Public Sector Leadership 9781845447014, 9780861767526

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ISSN 0143-7739

The Leadership & Organization Development Journal Volume 23, Number 8, 2002

Public sector leadership Guest Editor: Marie McHugh

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Contents

414 Access to The Leadership & Organization Development Journal online

467 Leadership and innovation in the public sector

415 Abstracts & keywords

477 Note from the publisher

417 Guest editorial

478 Author and title index to volume 23, 2002

419 Leading communities: capabilities and cultures Jean Hartley

430 Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government? Hadyn Bennett

442 Participation as the key to successful change – a public sector case study Geraldine O’Brien

456 Leading urban institutions of higher education in the new millennium Rick Rantz

Sandford Borins

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Abstracts & keywords

Leading communities: capabilities and cultures

Participation as the key to successful change – a public sector case study

Jean Hartley

Geraldine O’Brien

Keywords Local government, Leadership, Skills, National cultures

Keywords Organizational change, Participation, Human resource development, Public sector, Ireland, Case studies

The concept of community leadership is examined, using a model with four arenas of leadership. Little attention has been paid to the capabilities which managers (as well as councillors and staff) need to perform effectively in this new leadership role. The paper is based on a case study of a highly innovative council. The paper examines three issues: the capabilities required for community leadership in terms of working with communities, in terms of working in partnerships, and the management development programme to support cultural change. The research shows that service delivery in the context of community leadership is increasingly complex, varied and outwardly focused. New skills include responding as well as directing, using lateral as well as vertical skills, having an impact on other organizations, not just one’s own. These have major implications for hierarchical organizations and professionally-driven services. The development of a community leadership focus also contains tensions for the management of performance and motivation.

Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government? Hadyn Bennett Keywords Absenteeism, Management, Commitment, Local government

Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] Abstracts & keywords # MCB UP Limited [ISSN 0143-7739]

Employee absence has been widely acknowledged in recent years to be a growing problem for organisations, including local government organisations. This paper investigates linkages between organisational commitment, absence management policies and absenteeism in local government from three perspectives – those of human resource practitioners, line managers and employees – through a series of semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. The conclusion is reached that much employee absence in this sector can be attributed to the adoption of a ‘‘compliance’’, or transactional approach, to employee commitment by both management and employees, and the absence of shared values between the employees and the organisation (internalised commitment). The implications which this holds for the management of employee absence are also examined.

Public sector reform has focussed attention on how different models of change can contribute to organizational metamorphosis. Traditional ‘‘top down’’ approaches are unlikely to achieve the necessary change. Instead, using a case study of an Irish public sector organization, this article argues that direct participation, involving frontline staff, can play a key role in ensuring acceptance of change and in creating the conditions for employees to make effective contributions to their organization. Direct participation plays a vital role in employee development. However, it also places demands on organizations to adopt a more facilitative and supportive style of management and to put in place mechanisms that will ensure that participation becomes an integral part of the work process.

Leading urban institutions of higher education in the new millennium Rick Rantz Keywords Higher education, Leadership, Organizational effectiveness This study gained insight into the impinging realities that college and university presidents will face in the new millennium, into the roles and strategies available for tackling these realities, and into the personal attributes that contribute to organizational effectiveness. Case study methods were employed, as the participants were all similarly bound by time and space. Qualitative analytic procedures were utilized to interpret data elicited in response to interview protocol, a process involving: organizing data; generating categories, themes, and patterns; testing emergent hypotheses against the data; and searching for alternative explanations of the data. Results substantiate findings that leaders transform their respective institutions into ethical and moral organizations by demonstrating their own moral and ethical fortitude.

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Abstracts & keywords Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 415–416

Leadership and innovation in the public sector Sandford Borins Keywords Innovation, Leadership, Bottom up decision making, Crisis This article considers the nature and role of leadership in three ideal types of public management innovation: politically-led responses to crises, organizational turnarounds engineered by newly-appointed agency heads, and bottom-up innovations initiated by front-line public servants and middle managers. Quantitative results from public sector innovation awards indicate that bottom-up innovation occurs much more frequently than conventional wisdom would indicate. Effective political leadership in a crisis requires decision making that employs a wide search for information, broad consultation, and skeptical examination of a wide range of options. Successful leadership of a turnaround requires an agency head to regain political confidence, reach out to stakeholders and clients, and to convince dispirited staff that change is possible and that their efforts to do better will be supported. Political leaders and agency heads can create a supportive climate for bottom-up innovation by consulting staff, instituting formal awards and informal recognition for innovators, promoting innovators, protecting innovators from control-oriented central agencies, and publicly championing bottomup innovations that have proven successful and have popular appeal.

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Guest editorial

This special issue of The Leadership & Organizational Development Journal adopts as its theme, ‘‘Public sector leadership’’. Many would argue that the turbulence that currently characterises the operating environment of public sector organizations highlights a need, more than ever before, for effective leadership. Across the globe public sector organizations are facing increasing demands from government and other stakeholders for accountability coupled with enhanced performance. As a consequence the majority are being forced to radically transform the way in which they operate. This in turn has caused many to embark upon far reaching programmes of change, the success of which is highly dependent upon effective leadership. Acceptance of this argument raises a number of questions. In the first instance what is meant by effective leadership in the public sector? To what extent does this concern the leadership of individuals, groups, organizations, society, ideas and cultures? In what way is effective public sector leadership complicated by the political environment, and the need to respond to and work with the demands and constraints imposed by government policy? This special issue brings together a collection of papers which engage in informed debate around these questions, and which examine a diverse range of issues concerned with the further development of the public sector. The topics addressed by the authors span leadership and management issues in local government, employee participation in organization change, leadership in education, and linkages between innovation and leadership. At one level it is evident that there are major differences in the subjects addressed by each of the contributors. However, at another, deeper level of analysis, it can be seen that a common theme which provides integration and unification among the five contributions to this special issue is the critical influence of effective leadership in creating a more vibrant and effective public sector. The first paper by Jean Hartley, ‘‘Leading communities: capabilities and cultures’’, focuses on leadership in local government Leadership & Organization and the concept of community leadership. Development Journal The paper refers to the UK Government’s 23/8 [2002] 417–418 modernisation agenda, which argues for an # MCB UP Limited [ISSN 0143-7739] increased role for local authorities in leading [DOI 10.1108/01437730210449302] their communities and being responsible for

About the Guest Editor

Marie McHugh is Professor of Organizational Behaviour and Head of the School of Business Organization and Management at the University of Ulster. Prior to taking up the position of Head of School in August 2001 she was director of the University of Ulster’s professional doctorate in management. Marie has extensive teaching experience in the field of organizational behaviour and she has taught on a variety of undergraduate, postgraduate and post experience programmes. Additionally she has engaged in consultancy assignments within the UK and in Scandinavia. Much of her research has concentrated on individual and organizational well-being and she has focused in particular on employee well-being within the context of public sector organizational change. Marie has published widely on these topics with her most recent contributions including a book on managing organization change published by the Chartered Institute of Marketing, and articles appearing in the International Journal of Public Sector Management, the Journal of General Management and the Journal of Supply Chain Management.

the social, economic and environmental wellbeing of the locality. The paper highlights the need to understand the concept of community leadership, and to understand the skills and other capabilities which will be needed to deliver those aspirations of local leadership and high quality services frequently referred to by government and the public. In her paper Jean addresses the issue of how local authorities might undertake management development in order to achieve organizational culture shifts to support community leadership. Effective leadership and management in local government are further emphasised in the second paper, which addresses the subject of absence management. Hadyn Bennett’s paper ‘‘Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government?’’ refers to the costly consequences of high levels of absence for individuals and organizations. Within an environment of constrained resources and ever increasing demands for enhanced performance, Hadyn presents evidence which indicates that much employee absence in local government can be attributed to the adoption of a ‘‘compliance’’ or transactional approach to employee commitment by management and employees, and the absence of shared values between employees and the organization. In reducing absence it is argued that local government organizations need to re-establish, or in some cases establish, high levels of internalised commitment, predicated on shared values between the organization and the individual and mutual investment and trust by each party (management and employees). Those in leadership roles have a vital part to play in helping to establish this commitment. The importance of employee participation in successful organization change forms the focus of the third paper in this special issue. Geraldine O’Brien presents arguments which again emphasise the critical role played by leaders in managing change. Using a case study of an Irish public sector organization, she presents evidence to support the argument that direct participation involving front-line staff can play a key role in the acceptance of change and in creating the conditions for employees to make effective contributions to their organization. However, this approach places demands on organizations to adopt a more facilitative and supportive style of management and to put in

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Guest editorial Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 417–418

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place mechanisms that will ensure that participation becomes an integral part of the process. Geraldine notes that senior management’s role in this ‘‘bottom up’’ change is to specify the general direction and provide a climate for change as well as to spread lessons from both successes and failures. The penultimate paper by Rick Rantz examines the issue of leadership in education. The paper investigates the roles that public sector college and university presidents are expected to perform in the twenty-first century and identifies those experiences that can help them prepare individuals to assume these roles. It is noted that currently colleges and university presidents are being presented with a plethora of new social constructs, while at the same time facing unprecedented rates of change and uncertainty in relation to economic and technological factors, coupled with change in the political landscape. It is argued that to complicate the situation further, external constituencies have increased their demands, vicious competition has become commonplace within the education sector, and institutional stress has become mainstay. Adopting a case study approach, data are presented which suggest that in the current environment presidents can no longer view their own institutions, the institutions of others, or other outside entities through a single lens if they are to keep pace with the range of complexities that accompany rapid economic and technological change. The final paper by Sandford Borins focuses on linkages between leadership and innovation. Much emphasis has been placed recently on the importance of innovation in organizations, with many commenting that the choice faced by a large number of managers is ‘‘innovate or die’’. The paper explores a number of interesting issues including whether or not innovations create

leadership capacity for the public sector, how leaders exercising formal authority react to innovations, and the role that they play in creating a climate for innovation. Consideration is given to the nature and role of leadership in three ideal-types of public management innovation: politically-led responses to crises, organizational turnarounds engineered by newly-appointed agency heads, and bottom-up innovations initiated by front-line public servants and middle managers. The paper concludes that there exists a strong link between innovation and leadership in the public sector and bottom up innovations occur more frequently in the public sector than received wisdom would have us believe. The individuals who initiate and drive these innovations often act as informal leaders. It is noted that the visibility that they gain and the results they achieve through their actions frequently lead them to be promoted to positions of formal leadership. In my role as Editor of this special issue I am deeply grateful to a large number of individuals for the guidance and assistance that they have provided; each has made a unique and vital contribution to the production of the issue. In particular I would like to thank Professor Tony Berry and Dr Susan Cartwright for their very helpful comments, and Paula Fernandez for her constant support and quick response to editorial questions. This special issue would not have been possible without the willingness of authors to submit papers and the subsequent co-operation and support of referees; to each I would like to express my gratitude for your commitment and hard work. I hope that all of those who read this special issue find it informative and that it advances our knowledge and understanding of critical issues associated with effective public sector leadership in our world. Marie McHugh Guest Editor

Leading communities: capabilities and cultures

Jean Hartley Local Government Centre, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK

Keywords Local government, Leadership, Skills, National cultures

Abstract The concept of community leadership is examined, using a model with four arenas of leadership. Little attention has been paid to the capabilities which managers (as well as councillors and staff) need to perform effectively in this new leadership role. The paper is based on a case study of a highly innovative council. The paper examines three issues: the capabilities required for community leadership in terms of working with communities, in terms of working in partnerships, and the management development programme to support cultural change. The research shows that service delivery in the context of community leadership is increasingly complex, varied and outwardly focused. New skills include responding as well as directing, using lateral as well as vertical skills, having an impact on other organizations, not just one’s own. These have major implications for hierarchical organizations and professionallydriven services. The development of a community leadership focus also contains tensions for the management of performance and motivation.

Received: December 2001 Revised: May 2002 Accepted: June 2002

Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 419–429 # MCB UP Limited [ISSN 0143-7739] [DOI 10.1108/01437730210449311]

Introduction There is a growing recognition that fundamentally different kinds of governance, public management and front-line delivery of local public services are required. Many commentators (e.g. Leach and Wilson, 2000; Benington, 2000; Gyford, 1991; Wilkinson and Applebee, 1999) have suggested that the challenges and changes in society are so profound that local authorities need to fundamentally rethink their relationship with their local communities. The implications for the knowledge, skills and attitudes of managers are only starting to be analysed and researched. Local authorities are no longer in a financial or legal position to provide comprehensive and universal services through the mechanism of the redistributive, Keynsian welfare state (Benington, 1997). On the other hand, the emphasis on the private market as an alternative mechanism of service delivery has contributed to some costreduction and a focus on users as customers, but is increasingly unable to provide longterm solutions to complex social problems such as the ageing of the population or crime and community safety (Stewart, 1995; Benington, 1997; Hood, 1998). Marketisation also tends to reduce rather than increase local democracy, participation and accountability. The current UK national government has also brought a new agenda, and new challenges and opportunities for local authorities to tackle complex, cross-cutting issues (Blair, 1998). For example, initiatives and programmes of Best Value, better government for older people, health and education action zones, the Crime and Disorder Act, local strategic partnerships and community planning all encourage closer working relationships between different services and departments within a The research register for this journal is available at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/researchregisters

local authority, as well as more collaborative working between the local authority and its citizens and users of services, and other agencies in the voluntary, public and private sectors (Cmnd 4014, 1998). These issues have forced, or are generating, major re-examination and reorientation of purposes, priorities and strategies, with profound consequences for the organizational design of local authorities. The traditional bureaucratic structures and procedures of government, organised around professional disciplines and functional departments, are increasingly found to be too rigid and inflexible to respond adequately to these complex problems and policy issues which cut across the boundaries and divisions between the vertical, hierarchical, organizational silos of most public services (Benington, 2000; Hartley and Benington, 1998; Maddock, 2002; White, 2000). The Government’s modernisation agenda argues for an increased role for local authorities in leading their communities and being responsible for the social, economic and environmental well-being of the locality (Cmnd 4014, 1998). This is further reinforced and developed in the most recent White Paper Strong Local Leadership – Quality Public Services (Cmnd 5237, 2001), where the government states that it will: . . . support councils to make a success of their unique role as democratically-elected leaders of their local communities. We will help them to develop the democratic legitimacy and sound governance to underpin community leadership and effective service delivery building on the new well-being powers and local strategic partnerships (Cmnd 5237, 2001, p. 10).

The White Paper also recognises that the role of councils in community leadership also requires new skills and capabilities, including training and development, and capacity building for managers (Cmnd 5237, 2001, p. 48). The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/0143-7739.htm

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Jean Hartley Leading communities: capabilities and cultures Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 419–429

While these are important aims, there is an urgent need to understand the concept of community leadership, and also to understand the skills and other capabilities which will be needed to deliver these aspirations of local leadership and high quality services. It is to these issues that we now turn.

Community leadership The concepts of ‘‘community governance’’ and ‘‘community leadership’’ have emerged to suggest the shift of emphasis away from simply managing and administering the local authority (its budgets, services and staff) towards leading and governing the local community (with its pluralistic and diverse networks of public, private and voluntary organisations, and informal associations and grassroots movements). We take the notion ‘‘governing the community’’ to mean ‘‘enabling the community to face issues, deal with problems, and realise aspirations in the most effective way’’ (Stewart, 1995, p. 14). The concept of community leadership is based upon three inter-related assumptions (Benington, 1997). First, that the purpose of a local authority is not simply to commission, deliver and/or manage services, but also to govern the local community. This includes not only representing the needs of diverse and sometimes competing groups and interests, but also developing their own capacities to voice their needs and develop local solutions (see also Ranson and Stewart, 1994; Banks and Shenton, 2001). Second, the local authority has a unique and distinctive role in governing the local community because of its democratic mandate to reflect and to balance the needs of the whole community rather than just its diverse and separate parts, and to represent and plan for future generations as well as current users. Finally, the local council cannot meet the needs of the local community on its own, but needs to do this in partnership with a wide range of other bodies in the public, private, voluntary and informal community sector. This has particularly been emphasised in the 2001 White Paper (Cmnd 5237, 2001). The complexity of issues that have to be addressed requires a higher degree of crossservice and cross-agency working, as well as public involvement, than previously. Within the local authority, the development of the community leadership role is primarily the responsibility of the councillor but it has implications for the roles of managers and staff throughout the authority. In this paper, we examine how the community leadership role of local authorities is requiring new capabilities on the part of managers.

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Taylor (1993) has conceptualised community leadership as consisting of four arenas. This framework has been tested and verified in other research (e.g. Hartley, 1998; Hartley and Benington, 1998) and has been used in the current research to chart emerging capabilities. It is shown in Figure 1 and is called the Warwick model of community leadership. The research examined the capabilities needed for: . shaping and supporting the development of grass-roots communities; . negotiating and mobilising effective partnerships with other public, private and voluntary agencies; . voicing the needs and interests of the local community in regional, national, European and international arenas; and . managing the local authority organisation and giving its services clear strategic direction. Leadership is proposed as significant for modernisation and improvement but is often alluded to without definition. There are at least two levels of analysis in the concept of leadership. In the first, leadership is the behaviours and actions of individuals, sometimes acting in concert at the senior level. For example, the proposal that an elected mayor or a head teacher will bring about ‘‘strong’’ leadership is based on this. The second approach has the local authority organisation as the unit of analysis. Here a focus on community leadership is by the local authority as a whole, working with other agencies in the locality, and having particular responsibility for voicing and addressing the needs and aspirations of local communities. This approach includes the role of individuals, but as part of organisational functioning. In considering the literature on leadership, Hartley and Allison (2000) distinguish between the concepts of leader and leadership. They argue that it is therefore valuable to distinguish between the person, the position and processes in terms of leadership. The idea of leadership as a set of processes concerned with influencing people and achieving goals and outcomes is reflected in the definition of leadership by Heifetz (1996) as mobilising people to tackle tough problems. There is clearly a leadership role for particular individuals in shaping visions of the future and encouraging the local authority to look beyond immediate pressures in order to fashion innovations to address a stronger external focus and greater responsiveness to citizens. However, earlier empirical research has revealed the importance of distributed leadership in local authority ‘‘modernisation’’ and ‘‘improvement’’ (Hartley and Allison, 2000).

Jean Hartley Leading communities: capabilities and cultures

Figure 1 Arenas of civic leadership

Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 419–429

This approach moves beyond traditional leadership models, which tend to emphasise individual action, and highlights the roles taken, severally and jointly, by councillors, managers and front-line staff. While the role of political leaders and chief executives can be crucial, such leaders do not always lead from the front but may empower nominated others to foster and promote change in the organisation. This is a different dimension of leadership than is sometimes assumed from the debates about ‘‘strong’’ leadership, which often imply more of a command and control approach from the strategic apex of the organization. Distributed leadership requires a cultural shift, with managers and others accepting their own role in community leadership.

Managerial capabilities for community leadership While new organisational forms are being considered to support a stronger community leadership role by the local authority, less attention has been paid to the kinds of skills, knowledge and personal capabilities which councillors, managers and staff need now and in the future to perform effectively in these new roles (Hartley, 1998). What new managerial competencies are needed and how can local authorities develop these in their managers? Are these competencies relevant more widely to front-line employees and politicians? Do they require not only new behaviours and skills, but also a new organizational culture about community leadership?

A literature review (Hartley, 1998) revealed an emerging literature on new contexts, new forms and new challenges for local authorities, but very little theoretical, conceptual or empirical work on what this would mean for the capabilities or competencies for managers to support community leadership. The literature on management competencies, on the other hand, has been dominated by discussions of generic frameworks and has not addressed the competencies needed for managing in a politically-led organisation (where issues of accessibility, democracy and capacitybuilding are important), or more specifically, what knowledge, skills and behaviours are needed for community leadership. Furthermore, many of the competency models are based on the behaviours and skills of individuals, but do not set this in the context of fostering a particular organizational or locality culture. Some local authorities have developed competency frameworks, following good practice in the private sector. Surveys on the use of competencies show that they are a feature of many organisations and are likely to become more prevalent (e.g. Strebler et al., 1997; Boam and Sparrow, 1992; Lawler and Ledford, 1997). Large organisations in the service sector are the most likely to employ competency frameworks as the way to identify key job skills and to develop staff (Strebler et al., 1997). We have preferred in this research to use the concept of capability rather than competency, as it avoids the unfortunately narrow concept and operationalisation of competency which has become prevalent (based solely on

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Jean Hartley Leading communities: capabilities and cultures Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 419–429

behavioural measures, focused only on performance standards and/or and highly normative). We define capabilities as ‘‘the skills, knowledge, experience, attributes and behaviours that an individual needs to perform a job effectively’’ (Hirsch and Strebler, 1995). Capabilities need to be set in the context both of job demands and of the organisational environment if models are not to be simplistic and over-generalised (see also Burgoyne, 1993). One problem with current competency frameworks is that they have, until recently, focused more on the skills needed to manage the internal organization. Increasingly, there is a recognition of the importance of additional management skills in local public service organizations, with skills directed outwards to communities, partners and networks. This paper, therefore, addresses three key questions. First, what are the capabilities required by managers for working with local communities to provide community leadership? Second, what are the capabilities required for inter-agency, i.e. partnership working, given that this is necessary to achieve community leadership? Finally, how might local authorities undertake management development in order to achieve the organizational culture shifts to support community leadership? These issues are examined through detailed research in an innovative local authority.

Research design and methods These research questions are examined through a detailed case study of a local council. The case study was selected by the author in conjunction with national, domainrelevant experts in public management. It was chosen because it had gained a national reputation (and a national award) for its efforts and achievements in developing its community leadership role. We can therefore be reasonably confident that identified capabilities are related to effective rather than average performance and that emerging innovations are captured in the research. The case study is based on data collected through multiple methods. A total of 17 interviews were conducted with a range of internal and external stakeholders to ensure a variety of perspectives on capabilities for community leadership. These included senior councillors[1] (leader and area committee chairs); strategic managers (chief executive, area directors, head of organization development and community initiatives co-ordinator); service managers (heads of service), and front-line staff (community workers). To ensure a perspective from local communities, two

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external stakeholders with detailed experience of interactions with the local authority were interviewed. These were a senior representative each of the business and voluntary sectors. Other sources of data included a short questionnaire, completed by the organization development manager, to supply details of the locality and the organisation. Documentary evidence (council minutes, policy papers, and training materials) were examined. Two meetings were also observed: an area committee meeting with councillors and local people, and a meeting of a town centre management group (an inter-agency group of council managers working with a number of voluntary and private sector managers). The findings from the case study were carefully tested and refined with a group of domain relevant experts: senior councillors, managers and policy officers convened through the research arm of a local government national agency. The use of informed observers is particularly important as a methodology for identifying strategic capabilities for future performance rather than just current effective performance (Kandola and Pearn, 1992; Lawler 1994). The interviews focused on the knowledge, behaviours, skills and attitudes which are seen by the respondent to be important in developing and enhancing the community leadership role of the authority, in both service delivery and in supporting local democracy. The interviewee was encouraged to describe examples of both good and poor skills, attitudes and behaviours in the authority in order to articulate these. The interviews were tape-recorded and then coded according to the capabilities reported to be important, using the Warwick model of community leadership. In this paper the first two dimensions only are analysed, both for reasons of space and also because these are the arenas both most under-researched and requiring most organizational change to achieve community leadership.

The case study organization ‘‘Eliot Council’’ (pseudonym) is a UK local authority serving a population of 150,000 across 370 square miles. It was a largely rural area but just over a quarter of the population lived in the main town, where urban social problems existed. Despite its rural nature, the economy was based on a high proportion of the workforce in manufacturing. An increase in industry and population had led to development pressures in the locality. The council was led by 60 councillors with a strong majority in the controlling political

Jean Hartley Leading communities: capabilities and cultures Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 419–429

party. The council had a strong commitment to, and national reputation for, devolution of decision-making and decentralisation of services. The council employed 850 employees (750 FTE) of whom 61 were managers. The authority managed a budget of £48 million. Until the early 1990s, the authority had been relatively traditional, with service based committees and departments. The ruling group of councillors then developed a Council Charter, which gave a strong focus on the role of the authority in supporting local communities. The charter included a commitment by the council to put local people first at all times, listen and respond to views and suggestions, foster a pride in the area, involve local people in decision-making by operating a style of local government that was open, accessible and consultative, provide affordable services and ensure that everyone was treated fairly. The appointment of a new chief executive in the early 1990s also contributed to the political and managerial leadership to take forward more concrete changes in decentralisation and devolution. Crucially, two reorganizations abolished most service committees and introduced four area committees. A flatter management structure (based on directorates rather than departments) and the establishment of four area offices, one for each of the areas, were introduced. Each area office was developed to operate as a ‘‘one-stop shop’’ for all council services. These were located across the large rural district, making council services more accessible to rural communities. There were therefore two key features supporting community leadership. These were devolution of decision making in order to make democratic processes and influence more accessible to local citizens and communities, and decentralisation of decision making so that local public services were available to people (both in terms of distance and also in terms of psychological boundaries). The council also emphasised new ways of learning about the needs and aspirations of local citizens, service users, council tax payers and communities. While traditionally, local councils have provided services on the basis of statutory duty and professional judgement, Eliot Council encouraged frontline staff to find and use new ways of involving the public. These included establishing informal advisory groups and panels for particular services, setting up a Citizens’ Jury. The council pioneered the development of village appraisals (a day where the community was given equipment and front-line staff support to evaluate how the village could be improved).

Capabilities for working with local communities Respondents emphasised the culture shift required (and still seen as necessary) to move from being a professionally-driven, paternalistic organisation towards one which aimed to empower individuals, groups and communities, and build their capacities. A number of key skills were seen as important for this and they are described in the following subsections.

Putting people at their ease There were important communication and interpersonal skills in working with members of the public: I have been really struck by how all staff and all councillors need to be facilitators. They need to create an environment where people can have and develop a discussion, explore issues, allow for different views. I used to think we only needed this for a few people, e.g. community services managers but I now think everyone needs to be able to do this (head of organization development).

Learning to think about services from a user’s perspective This has potentially immense consequences for the ways in which managers work with individuals and groups. Several respondents talked of the need to stand outside a professional or council perspective to understand what users and citizens wanted, needed and hoped for. Understanding some of the barriers to using services was part of that learning: You can’t make assumptions that people will come to you. There are all sorts of reasons why they can’t or won’t. So you have to think carefully about how to produce guides, how to consult people properly, what facilities they will need in order to become involved, etc. For example, transport problems are a huge practical barrier for people in this area. You have to think out what this means for the services you provide (community services manager). We made everyone take professional letters after their name off letterheads because that intimidates the public (head of organization development).

Listening to interests as well as voices This can be valuable because often communities do not want the same things. It requires paying attention to interests not just positions (cf Fisher and Ury, 1981): What if eco-warriors turned up here? We have to be careful not to produce a set view of what is acceptable protest or consultation procedures. We have to have respect for the ways in which communities choose themselves to voice their own issues (community services manager).

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Active listening was reported in several interviews to be a key skill, for managers, councillors and staff alike. Although this may appear to be very basic, it is underemphasised in many models of managerial skills. One interviewee commented that although enormous strides had been made in that direction, there was a difficulty emerging: There is a culture of having to be seen to be good in this council. The [national] award feeds this mentality. The danger can occur when you go to a consultation meeting and people who are being consulted say negative things about the council – people want to moan sometimes. Sometimes staff feel the obligation to defend the Council – so they end up not listening. They negate the complaints or change the subject. This disempowers people. You have to say ‘‘yes, you are right’’ instead of moving on, so that people really feel heard. This is the hard bones of consultation – it’s not PR (head of service).

Recognising the different pace and processes of community groups and individuals Local authority staff were familiar with the pace of work which was, in part, set by the committee cycle. Voluntary groups and informal associations may work at a different pace, and this had to be recognised and accommodated to by managers: The committee structure can create artificial time constraints which are difficult for the community (service manager).

Capacity building Where individuals and local communities may currently have a low or patchy level of engagement, or where groups have traditionally been passive in the face of council and other agency decisions, then the ability to notice powerlessness and invisibility, and to help develop confidence, skills and motivation can be important: Understanding people’s needs for services is not good enough. You have to consider not only needs but also aspirations of communities. You have to work with people for some time until you understand their background and can encourage them (community services manager).

Managing expectations One means of avoiding unnecessary conflict was to ensure that realistic expectations were communicated to communities of what the local authority can achieve. However, this was not always easy. The increasing expectations from the public about local authority services (at a time of shrinking resources) have significant implications. Part of the skill of managing expectations was being clear and having respect for others’ needs and aspirations: We mustn’t raise expectations and then not deliver. Part of the respect you have to have for people is doing what you say you will do. You must not allude to things and then not do them (service manager).

This also meant that managers had to have a working knowledge of the council systems, procedures and policies – and be able to explain them clearly and sensitively to individuals and groups.

Influencing skills Verbal and non-verbal skills were important here. Engaging people, communicating clearly, defusing tensions, presentational skills appropriate to the audience, matching, pacing and leading the audience were all mentioned: You shouldn’t lead from the front. You need to listen to reflect, to summarise, to influence with a light touch (community initiatives manager).

Detailed local knowledge Getting to know the locality, including its people, and spending time learning about the key issues and perspectives was seen to be important: Create new ways of working so that managers are tackling issues in the community rather than professional issues. We run workshops as an area team so that we can work together and identify what is already happening across services and where the gaps are. We try to be really imaginative so that we get out of the boundaries of a professional discipline. We look at areas on the map and check out the issues (service manager).

Professional skills Managing conflict and difference Communities contain considerable diversity of perspectives and interests. So managers have to be aware of conflict and tension and be able to channel and manage it as constructively as possible. Such conflict may arise either between groups in communities or with the local authority: You have to be able to say what you can’t do. But not from a position of regulations and procedures but in terms of different interests and views (area director).

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These remain crucial. Managers had to be experts in their own field but they now had to combine this with communication skills: As professionals come into contact with the public more, they can get asked awkward questions which they have to be able to answer not only technically but also socially. In the past, managers were protected from this by councillors. They have to be able to stand their own ground if this is appropriate – they have to be able to disagree with us (business representative).

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Maintaining a strategic focus Several councillors and managers emphasised that the focus on working with communities and the potential for this work was both wide-ranging in scope and timeconsuming, and involving a variety of local groups, agencies and organisations means that clarifying and maintaning the overall strategic focus of the local authority was essential to prevent the dissipation of energies and manager burnout. The need to understand how local priorities were sometimes in tension with corporate priorities was also important. Managers and councillors identified that a key issue in an organization committed to decentralisation and devolution was managing the tensions between the area services and committees and the whole district. It had to be handled with sensitivity and awareness by service managers: We need more crossflow between areas and the district, both at councillor level and at manager and staff levels. People need to be able to understand both dimensions of the authority. They have to be clear about the importance of the respective roles and the overall priorities of the council (service manager).

Working constructively with councillors The greater visibility of staff and managers in the community meant greater interaction and some overlap between the roles of councillors and employees in serving the public. The public may not be aware of (or particularly interested in) the differences between councillors and staff. This required a stronger element of team-working, whether in area committee meetings in community halls, in public meetings or in citizens’ juries. However, working closely with communities could mean that there were divided loyalties for managers and front-line staff where the worker gets close to a community on a particular issue, but then finds that the councillors do not agree or that councillors feel obliged to support a district rather than a local position: It can be very difficult. But you have to understand that politicians, like communities, have views and responsibilities. Sometimes the conflict can be constructive and at other times it can be hard (service manager).

Front-line managers have to reconcile how far they are working on the agenda of the local community and how far on that of the local council. This can cause some tensions: This is not a nice little market town, it’s a tough place. Some councillors and staff are loath to recognise this because of the knockon effect onto tourism (community worker).

Working in partnerships Many of the capabilities described in the previous section were relevant here, but in addition, further skills were reported as being necessary for working with the complexities of long-term relationships with several agencies. Some issues are within the sphere of influence but not direct control of the local authority. Partnership with key parts of the voluntary sector were seen as important ways to act on the complex issues which crossed institutional boundaries (such as economic development or rural poverty). Closer engagement with the business community had occurred through initiatives such as the town regeneration scheme. (The research did not explore links with other public agencies directly.)

Being aware of different interests in the partnership The local authority may not necessarily lead a partnership, so a command and control style of leadership was seen as unlikely to be effective. Even where the authority does take the lead role, maintaining the coalition involved recognising different interests which had to be taken into account. There was also a need to be flexible (within the strategic focus) as to how the partnership plans developed. The ability to take the time to listen and understand the views, values and practices of the voluntary sector was appreciated – managers and councillors were criticised where they did not do this. One manager in a liaison role with the voluntary sector was commended for her approach: When she got the job she spent the first two days working from our office, getting to know our problems and getting to know our people. This was widely appreciated. This is taking the voluntary sector seriously (voluntary sector representative).

This could be time-consuming. Coalitionbuilding was not about one-off meetings and decisions. One councillor noted that considerable difficulties can arise later if a false consensus emerges in partnerships and the different interests are not tactfully explored, reflected on and addressed. He stressed that this was an issue on which both elected members and managers had to learn new skills.

Understanding strategy and strategic opportunities Steering a course when partners have different interests meant staying alert both to the strategy which the local authority was pursuing, but also recognising the potential of new circumstances as they arose. There

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was also the skill of recognising when closure on an issue was appropriate. This involved an understanding of timing, and group and inter-organisational dynamics. It meant holding to the broad strategy at times when the authority and its managers were under pressure to compromise on the main policies and priorities: This authority has developed a reputation for consultation but from time to time I’ve seen a situation develop where a small vociferous minority can derail a strategy. Councillors and officers have to avoid being intimidated by the hostility which can build up and say no, you’ve made your point but this is not going to change (business representative).

Working with partners as equal but different This required avoiding a paternalistic, dependency-creating culture. The voluntary sector in particular felt quite sensitive to, and reported their constituency of other voluntary groups as also being sensitive to, implications or assumptions from councillors and managers that the council was the superior partner. The voluntary sector representative made a distinction between the high level of skills shown by some managers compared with the more traditional approaches of others. This involved a major attitudinal shift on all sides: Everyone has had to change. The council, the voluntary sector etc. We need to be equal. The voluntary sector has information on the ground and contacts. In the past, this has not been valued. Our council is very good – they have seen the gaps between themselves and other organisations and they are trying to work with this . . .. For our part, we have had to learn to compromise. Many voluntary groups have had to fight hard and so they sometimes have got aggressive – we are now learning to work together much better (voluntary sector representative).

For managers this means: It’s not enough just to be nice to them. It’s not just empowerment and all those buzz words. We need to respect them as an equal partner. We’ve got to get rid of the attitude which says ‘‘oh, we’ll have to have them involved, she will do!’’ (community services manager).

Influencing skills Leading through influence rather than control in partnerships was seen as important. Influencing and negotiation skills included matching others’ approach: Local authorities have their own jargon so they have to learn that we don’t all know this terminology. They have to explain things to us... produce reports with less flowery language (business representative).

One manager commented that he knew how to write reports for committee, which

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included the development of the policy context as preamble, but that writing a public relations document for joint fund-raising was an entirely different proposition, which demanded different skills: I had a first go but it was coming out as a council report. You have to promote and market the District Council. It has got to have a sales pitch . . .. I don’t have the skills for this at the moment. You have to think about it from a customer point of view not just about fund-raising.

Influencing skills needed also to be verbal: they have to be able to get their case across – they have to explain (chief executive).

This was seen as particularly important in meetings where there was little or nothing in writing. For local authority managers brought up in a culture of written communications, this is a major shift.

Inter-agency team working skills One manager we interviewed made a distinction between an inter-agency team and a loose group. In the latter, the manager was able to retain the perspective of their own department or authority and focus on their own agenda while trying to be collaborative. The need for genuinely crossservice teams which were focused on the needs of an area and were able to take collective responsibility (i.e. across organisations and departments) was a very different remit for managers and staff because it involved recognising that all the members of the team needed to be able to work effectively if the overall project was to succeed. This meant working to create a positive climate, conducive to joint working, while recognizing and overcoming the frustrations which can arise from a team composed of staff from different institutions with different policies, procedures and financing arrangements: We say here that you can’t empower the community unless you empower staff. For example, you can’t use networks outside if you don’t network internally (manager).

The development of management capabilities In this section, we examine how Eliot Council identified and developed the knowledge, skills and attitudes of managers to achieve community leadership. Three key strands of experience were, and continued to be, used to develop the key capabilities of managers to work in a more communityfocused way. These were structural change, cultural change, and the management development programme.

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Management development through structural change The structural changes to achieve devolution of decision making and decentralisation of services had had a significant impact on capabilities and organizational culture. A key challenge for managers was to operationalise the decentralisation of direct services. Several interviewees argued that this had created substantial learning opportunities, as it brought many managers closer to the service users and the wider community for the first time: So most of our development work is out there (community initiatives co-ordinator).

Management development through cultural change There was no argument that our focus was devolution and decentralisation – how they achieved that was up to them (chief executive).

To assess what the community leadership approach might mean for particular managers and services, all managers spent a half-day in small groups with interpersonal consultants after the physical relocation into area offices. Managers were invited to reflect on how they handled difficult situations (with staff, with councillors, with the public) and shared together for the first time their experiences of organizational and cultural change in the organization and its ways of delivering services. This included the processes of grappling with how to behave in ways which were more open and accessible to the public. Among other effects, this was reported to have helped to identify some of the capabilities which managers needed to take a stronger community leadership role in their work. Further commitment to cultural change came through the (at least annual) ‘‘service day’’ events, when the whole team from a service group or from an area office met to examine how they were assessing and providing services, and to look at possible improvements and innovations (some staff were in more than one because they were members of several teams). The councillors’ cross-cutting strategy groups (on e.g. environmental issues, land use, economy and transport) also enabled further innovation as policy issues developed, and encouraged further scrutiny of issues from a user and community perspective. Councillors and key managers were also committed to developing an organizational culture of learning from the public and they encouraged the use of a range of investigative, consultative and participative techniques such as user surveys, mystery shopping, statutory performance monitoring,

focus groupsetc to achieve this. This is reported to help reinforce the development of new capabilities for managers and staff.

Management development through a formal programme The organization had a formal programme of management development which was seen as a ‘‘top-up’’ to learning on the job and informal learning networks in the organization. A fiveday programme covered self-reflection, 360 degree feedback, personality type, learning styles, leadership analysis and team roles. Information the manager learnt about him/ herself shaped their personal development plan for the next two to three years. In this authority, the emphasis on community leadership and decentralisation created more than the usual work pressures both to carry on the ‘‘day job’’ and undertake actions as part of the personal development plan: Decentralisation creates more pressure on managers. We have smaller office teams, e.g. in an area office, how do you get cover while you go on a course even for a couple of days? It’s not like working in a large office where there is likely to be someone who can keep your work ticking over. And because we are close to the community, we have more regular dealings with the public, who expect you to be there (head of organization development).

Discussion The research is based on a single case study in a highly innovative authority. Eliot Council is an authority with a national reputation for its community leadership approach, so the capabilities analysed here are related to high rather than average or dysfunctional performance. Community leadership by local authorities cannot be taken for granted, but must be won through interaction with local communities which participate in the processes of defining the issues and priorities for local governance. The case study research draws on our framework of community leadership (Figure 1) to examine the demands and challenges for the roles of managers in service delivery to the community and in supporting local democracy. The case study examines the capabilities for two arenas of community leadership: shaping and supporting the development of grassroots communities; and negotiating and mobilising effective partnerships with other organizations. This model indicates that the tasks of service delivery in a context of community leadership are becoming increasingly complex, varied, and outwardly focused. It

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takes place increasingly outside the town hall and central committees. Area committees have been designed to give greater access and voice to local residents and area offices have been developed to provide greater accessibility to council services. Many of the management capabilities for managing the internal organization are in place in existing management development schemes (Hartley, 1998; Hirsch and Strebler, 1995). However, for the newer external roles which local authorities are undertaking, there is a need for further management capabilities. These include a range of skills based on closer interactions with a greater diversity of people, groups and organisations, engaged in more complex and changing tasks than in the past, and with an enhanced context of democracy (including issues of accessibility of services, participation in decision making and greater responsiveness and accountability). Many of the current models of management skills are inadequate because they are based on the control of the internal organisation, with the manager (largely) in charge. The analysis of community leadership suggests that the focus has to become more external and with the manager being responsive to other individuals’ and groups’ demands and agendas as well as his/her own. There is a concern with capacity building as well as with managing existing resources. In many ways, this represents a paradigm shift for local authorities, their management, and their practices. The private sector is also grappling with a stronger external and responsive orientation (e.g. Ghoshal and Bartlett, 1995; Fairtlough, 1994; Lawler, 1994) but without having to address issues of democratic accountability or of service delivery to the whole community. This paper examines capabilities for managers, with the focus primarily on the individual and the behaviours, skills and other qualities they need to perform effectively to support and enhance community leadership. This research also raises issues about moving from an individual level of analysis to a group or team level, because the research revealed some capabilities for team-working and effective performance, whether this is a ‘‘team’’ of leader and chief executive, councillor and manager working together, a whole service team or an inter-agency team. The individual focus of much of the academic work on competencies needs to be supplemented with a group and organizational level of analysis. There are also implications for the ways in which management development is carried out, such as developing inter-agency programme and learning sets.

This is also evident in the case study where changing the culture of the organization is reported to be a significant way of changing services for the community. Changing the mind-set and thinking about what it is like to be a user of services was a strong thread in the way in which the organizational and cultural change had been carried out in Eliot Council. It also means that the approach to management development in order to achieve and enhance new capabilities and new ways of serving the public was based in part on structural and cultural change as well as on a formal management development programme. The capabilities for working with local communities (e.g. capacity building, coalition building, developmental working) can be described as core capabilities, in that they are widely reported in interviews. The arena of partnership working requires additional capabilities beyond these. Some tasks increasingly require listening and developmental skills as well as managing and directing skills (e.g. working with communities). There is an increasing emphasis on developing lateral skills as well as vertical skills (upwards to superior and downwards to subordinates). Lateral skills mean that managers need to be competent at working in cross-service and inter-agency ways. These have major implications for hierarchical organisations and professionally-driven services. Effective performance must now be given with a wider range of stakeholders than in the past. Awareness of the needs, interests and cultures of local groups, the voluntary sector, the business sector, and other parts of the public sector means developing the capacity to handle change, uncertainty and complexity. Professional skills, while a prerequisite, are not sufficient for working with a wide range of stakeholders. No list of capabilities can ever be complete. The complexity of context and circumstance means that they can provide at best a guide and a language for considering capabilities in particular situations and for alerting managers to the need for systemic change and/or development. Capability identification is most effective when used as a guide to assessing strengths and weaknesses rather than as checklists (Lawler and Ledford, 1997). The development of a community leadership focus is not without tensions for the management of performance and for motivation. The (partial) replacement of a traditional bureaucracy with a responsive, citizen-centred organisation creates new challenges. There were pressures for taking a community focus but these have to be set

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alongside the need for a corporate, councilwide focus. Acting on behalf or with the community may at times conflict with council policies and priorities. In addition, as the roles of councillors, managers and staff become more overlapping (with the public often not knowing or needing to know the differences), this places new demands on the interactions between councillors and managers, and between managers and staff. Overall, this research has found that new types of knowledge, skills, attitudes and cultures are required if the local authority is to operate not as a modernist bureaucracy providing mass-production services through a professional elite, but in a responsive, leadership role which is concerned to contribute to articulating the needs and aspirations of local communities.

Note 1 For an international audience, we have used the term ‘‘councillor’’ throughout this paper, though the term, ‘‘local politician’’, ‘‘elected representative’’ and ‘‘elected member’’ are used in the academic literature and by interviewees.

References Banks, S. and Shenton, F. (2001), ‘‘Regenerating neighbourhoods: a critical look at the role of community capacity-building’’, Local Economy, Vol. 16, pp. 286-98. Benington, J. (1997), ‘‘New paradigms and practices for local government: capacity building within civil society’’, in Kraemer S. and Roberts, J. (Eds), The Politics of Attachment, Free Association Books, London. Benington, J. (2000), ‘‘The modernization and improvement of government and public services’’, Public Money and Management, Vol. 20 No. 2, pp. 3-8. Blair, T. (1998), The Third Way: New Politics for the New Century, The Fabian Society, London. Boam, R. and Sparrow, P. (1992), Designing and Achieving Competency, McGraw Hill, New York, NY. Burgoyne, J. (1993), ‘‘The competency movement: issues, stakeholders and prospects’’, Personnel Review, Vol. 22 No. 6, pp. 6-13. Cmnd 4014 (1998), Modern Local Government: In Touch with the People, The Stationery Office, London. Cmnd 5237 (2001), Strong Local Leadership – Quality Public Services, The Stationery Office, London. Fairtlough, G. (1994), ‘‘Organizing for innovation: compartments, competencies and networks’’, Long Range Planning, Vol. 27 No. 3, pp. 88-97. Fisher, R. and Ury, W. (1981), Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In, Arrow Books, London. Ghoshal, S. and Bartlett, C. (1995), ‘‘Building the entrepreneurial corporation: new organizational processes, new managerial

tasks’’, European Management Journal, Vol. 13 No. 2, pp. 139-55. Gyford, J. (1991), Citizens, Consumers and Councils, Macmillan, Basingstoke. Hartley, J. (1998), Leading Communities, Local Government Management Board, London. Hartley, J. and Allison, M. (2000), ‘‘The role of leadership in modernisation and improvement of public services’’, Public Money and Management, April, pp. 35-40. Hartley, J. and Benington, J. (1998), Community Governance in the Information Society, Foundation for Information Technology in Local Government, London. Heifetz, R. (1996), Leadership without Easy Answers, Belknap Press, Cambridge, MA. Hirsch, W. and Strebler, M. (1995), ‘‘Defining managerial skills and competencies’’, in Mumford, A. (Ed.), Handbook of Management Development, Gower, Aldershot. Hood, C. (1998), The Art of the State, Clarendon, Oxford. Kandola, R. and Pearn, M. (1992), ‘‘Identifying competencies’’, in Boam, R. and Sparrow, P. (Eds), Designing and Achieving Competency, McGraw Hill, New York, NY. Lawler, E. (1994), ‘‘From job-based to competencybased organisations’’, AMA Management Handbook Journal of Organisational Behaviour, Vol. 15 No. 1, pp. 3-15 (1990). Lawler, E.E. and Ledford, G. (1997), ‘‘New approaches to organizing: competencies, capabilities and the decline of the bureaucratic model’’, in Cooper, C. and Jackson, S. (Eds), Creating Tomorrow’s Organizations, Wiley, Chichester. Leach, S. and Wilson, D. (2000), Local Political Leadership, Policy Press, Bristol. Maddock, S. (2002), ‘‘Making modernisation work: new narratives, change strategies and people management in the public sector’’, International Journal of Public Sector Management, Vol. 15 No. 1, pp. 13-43. Ranson, S. and Stewart, J. (1994), Management for the Public Domain: Enabling the Learning Society, Macmillan, London. Stewart, J. (1995). Local Government: An Observer’s View, LGMB, Luton. Stoker, G. (1999), The New Management of Local Governance, Macmillan, London. Strebler, M., Robinson, D. and Heron, P. (1997), Getting the Best Out of Your Competencies, Institute of Employment Studies, University of Sussex, Brighton. Taylor, M. (1993), ‘‘The four axes of civic leadership’’, research paper, Local Government Centre, University of Warwick, Coventry. White, L. (2000), ‘‘Changing the whole system in the public sector’’, Journal of Organization Change Management, Vol. 13, pp. 162-77. Wilkinson, D. and Applebee, E. (1999), Implementing Holistic Government: Joined Up Action on the Ground, Policy Press, Bristol.

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Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government?

Hadyn Bennett University of Ulster, Newtownabbey, Northern Ireland, UK

Keywords Absenteeism, Management, Commitment, Local government

Abstract Employee absence has been widely acknowledged in recent years to be a growing problem for organisations, including local government organisations. This paper investigates linkages between organisational commitment, absence management policies and absenteeism in local government from three perspectives – those of human resource practitioners, line managers and employees – through a series of semistructured interviews and focus group discussions. The conclusion is reached that much employee absence in this sector can be attributed to the adoption of a ‘‘compliance’’, or transactional approach, to employee commitment by both management and employees, and the absence of shared values between the employees and the organisation (internalised commitment). The implications which this holds for the management of employee absence are also examined.

Received: January 2002 Revised: May 2002 Accepted: July 2002

Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 430–441 # MCB UP Limited [ISSN 0143-7739] [DOI 10.1108/01437730210449320]

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The issue of employee absence has attracted much attention in recent years, and from a variety of perspectives. Absence from work has been widely acknowledged to be a growing problem for organisations in general and for local government organisations in particular (CBI, 1999; Local Government Auditor, 1999). For example, IDS (1998) estimated the annual cost of absence to the UK economy to be around £13bn, an average of £581 per employee. These estimates are supported by the CBI (2001), which estimated that in 2000 around 192 million working days were lost through absence. This represents an average of 7.8 working days per employee – 3.4 per cent of working time – at an estimated cost to the economy of £10.7 billion. Other authors have concluded, however, that the true cost of absence is even greater, once indirect costs such as lower quality products or services and lower customer satisfaction are included. For example, Ho (1997) argued that the economic impact of employee absenteeism derives mainly from the costs of decreased productivity because of absence from work, less experienced replacements and the additional expense of hiring substitute labour. On the basis of data collected by the CBI (1999) it is estimated that when indirect costs are included, absenteeism costs British employers around £1,092 per employee per year. The importance of issues such as employee absence and their need to form a focus for management attention are especially significant when organisations are being pressurised to achieve enhanced levels of performance. At such times, their detrimental effects upon organisational wellbeing will be most keenly felt, and their incompatibility with desired improvements

most apparent. Furthermore, employee absence and its manifestations may represent a significant threat to change management in circumstances where organisational systems, structures and processes, and management practices, are contributing to the level of absence. Within the UK local government context there has been much pressure for change over the past decade. For example, Benington (2000) noted local government to have been warned that it is in ‘‘last chance saloon’’ and that failure to improve will cause the Government to take over, privatise or bypass poor services and authorities. Davis and Geddes (2000) have further highlighted the need for change within local government, noting the lack of a clear sense of direction, lack of coherence, and variability in service standard as being important drivers of change in the eyes of central government. Much of the pressure for change has been exemplified through a suite of initiatives over the past decade (and longer) such as the financial management initiative (FMI), compulsory competitive tendering (CCT) and more recently best value (BV). The outcome of such initiatives has been increased emphasis on efficiency and effectiveness. In consequence, many local authorities have been forced to embark upon often far-reaching programmes of change which have required fundamental changes to organisational systems and processes, including the way in which operations and people are managed. These new approaches have often required a shift in the mindset, attitudes and beliefs of organisational members, and highlighted a need for a breakdown of the rigid bureaucracy which has been the hallmark of public sector organisations in the past (McHugh and Bennett, 1999). Local government organisations in Northern Ireland have been subjected to the

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Introduction

Hadyn Bennett Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government? Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 430–441

same pressures for enhanced performance, efficiency and effectiveness as those in other parts of the UK. Within the region, much concern has been expressed with regard to the level of employee absence within district councils (Local Government Auditor, 1999). Indeed, the CBI (2001) estimated public sector absenteeism in Northern Ireland to cost the local economy £250 million per annum, while the average number of days lost per employee across the Province was 11, compared to an average of just under eight days across the UK as a whole. Responding to recent concerns, research was carried out into employee absenteeism within local government on behalf of the Local Government Staff Commission for Northern Ireland in an effort to gain an insight into the scale and causes of the problem, and to address the issue of how absence might be managed more effectively. Drawing on this research, this paper investigates the role of organisational commitment as a key moderating variable in employee absence, and examines relationships between employee commitment and absence from three perspectives – those of human resource managers, line managers and employees. Adopting employee commitment as a moderating variable requires that, initially, relationships are examined between absence and organisational processes and procedures, since these processes and procedures underpin commitment. The nature and consequences of employee commitment are then examined. Subsequent to this, relationships between commitment and absence are examined within the Northern Ireland local government context and conclusions drawn and recommendations made as to how absence might be better managed within the context of ongoing organisational change and development.

Relationships between organisational processes and procedures and employee absence Employee absence can be categorised into various types. The most obvious is where the employee is prevented from attending work due to actual illness or injury. While it is convenient to absolve the employing organisation of any responsibility for such occurrences, it is, however, important to acknowledge that in some cases the root cause of such illness or injury may be partly attributable to the way in which the organisation is managed. In other instances, aspects of organisational management may

result in employee absence where no physical illness or injury actually exists, and where the absence is attributable to low job satisfaction in some or other manifestation. Aspects of organisational and managerial practice which may contribute to employee absence (whether through inducing illness or injury or through contributing to low levels of employee motivation) include the way in which tasks or the work context are organised, the structure of the organisation and nature of the management hierarchy, and low levels of employee responsibility, autonomy, job satisfaction and organisational commitment (Dalton and Mesch, 1990; Rentsch and Steel, 1998; Cotton and Tuttle, 1986; Clegg, 1983). This view is further supported by Saratoga (1998) who argues that from a management perspective, high employee absence is a very clear indicator of some form of organisational misbehaviour, often indicating dissatisfaction with the organisation, which requires analysis and action. Further, it is frequently argued that absence levels within organisations are subject to cultural influences. For example, Gellatly and Luchak (1998) report a common research finding to be that individual absence is affected to varying degrees by the collective behaviour of others – through the process of employee socialisation individuals learn how much absence is expected by co-workers and management. Thus, individuals may experience social pressure to raise or lower their level of personal absence to a norm that has been established in the work group or organisational culture. Regardless of the reason, absenteeism from work clearly represents an enormous cost for organisations and can be argued (in cases) to be indicative of deeply rooted organisational problems embedded in organisational structures and management practices. Such problems are likely to adversely affect the ability of the organisation to cope effectively with the challenges presented by its environment, and in particular the effective and efficient introduction of programmes of organisational change. Indeed, much evidence exists that the path of organisational transformation is rarely smooth, and various authors have contended that the degree of success achieved is highly dependent upon the commitment and support of employees (see, for example, Bennett and Durkin, 2000; Burnes, 1996; Senior, 1997; Balogun and Hope-Hailey, 1999; McHugh et al., 1999). Advocates of change management frequently argue that commitment to change is likely to be influenced by the commitment of the individual to the organisation; this

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Hadyn Bennett Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government? Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 430–441

commitment in turn, it may be argued, influences factors such as morale, motivation and job satisfaction (Martocchio, 1994; Johns and Nicholson, 1992). The literature further highlights linkages between these aspects of organisational life and behavioural outcomes such as levels of stress, absenteeism and labour turnover (Dalton and Mesch, 1990; Martocchio, 1994; Ho, 1997). Within this context, and given the continued pressures for change within local government, this paper examines linkages between employee commitment and absence within the context of Northern Ireland local government, and assesses the prospects for the future successful management of change within the sector in the light of the findings presented.

Organisational commitment The ways in which tasks or the work context are organised, the structure of the organisation and the management hierarchy, together with low levels of employee responsibility, morale, motivation and job satisfaction, have all been shown to be associated with employee absence (Dalton and Mesch, 1990; Rentsch and Steel, 1998). It can be argued that aspects such as these are all reflected within the extent of an individual’s organisational commitment. This is a construct which has attracted many definitions. Jaros et al. (1993, p. 989) noted that: For over two decades, researchers have persistently and gradually refined the meaning of organisational commitment. It has evolved into a complex concept that can serve as a summary index of work-related experiences and as a predictor of work behaviours and behavioural intentions.

Morrow (1983) identified over 25 commitment related concepts and measures. Porter et al. (1974, p. 604) defined commitment as ‘‘the strength of an individual’s identification with and involvement in a particular organisation’’, having based this assessment on measures of motivation, identification with the values of the organisation, and employees’ intentions of remaining members. Buchanan (1974, p. 53) took this definition one stage further and described commitment as being ‘‘a partisan affective attachment to the goals and values of an organisation, to one’s roles in relation to the goals and values, and to the organisation for its own sake, apart from its purely instrumental worth’’. Porter et al.’s definition distinguishes between attachment based on exchange (involvement in return for extrinsic reward)

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and that based on a moral attachment where involvement is based on value congruence (between the individual and the organisation). This distinction is one which has been made by many researchers in the area, going back as far as Kelman (1958), Becker (1960) and Etzioni (1961). Indeed, Kelman (1958) distinguished between commitment based on compliance (where the individual adopts specific patterns of behaviour and attitudes in return for specific rewards and to avoid costs associated with quitting/withdrawal from the organisation), identification (where attitudes and behaviours are adopted in order to gain association with a valued third party) and internalisation (in which individuals adopt specific behaviours and attitudes because their content is congruent with the individuals’ value systems). While recognising that employee commitment can be approached from a number of perspectives, O’Reilly and Chatman (1986) developed Kelman’s (1958) theme and identified psychological attachment (the psychological bond linking the individual and the organisation) as a central theme in all the various approaches to commitment. Psychological attachment, according to O’Reilly and Chatman (1986, p. 493) ‘‘reflects the degree to which the individual internalises or adopts characteristics or perspectives of the organisation’’. The basis for an individual’s psychological attachment to an organisation falls into three categories according to O’Reilly and Chatman (1986) (reflecting those identified by Kelman (1958)). These are: 1 compliance, or instrumental involvement for specific, extrinsic rewards; 2 identification, or involvement based on a desire for affiliation; and 3 internalisation, or involvement predicated on congruence between individual and organisational values (O’Reilly, and Chatman, 1986, p. 493). This approach to employee commitment has been subsequently adopted by other researchers in the area (see, for example, Jaros et al., 1993), and provides factor analytic support for the idea of a multidimensional approach to the study of commitment. Indeed, Jaros et al. (1993, p. 970) conclude that ‘‘single factor models do not represent the conceptual and empirical domain of organisational commitment’’. Each of these dimensions of commitment – internalised, identification and compliance (O’Reilly and Chatman, 1986) – can be argued to be threatened by any process of organisational change. Movement into new

Hadyn Bennett Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government? Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 430–441

products, services and markets may result in changes in identification commitment as the core nature of the business (which attracts identification commitment in the first place) changes. It is also fair to argue that organisational development which results in changes in the organisation’s core underlying values poses a significant threat to internalised commitment on the part of employees – by its very nature such change will dissolve the shared values on which internalised commitment is based. Compliance commitment can be affected by organisational change in a number of ways. The obvious case is where organisational change results in economic changes to terms and conditions of employment. Even where terms and conditions of employment are not altered, changes in tasks and duties can still impact on compliance commitment. It can also be argued that compliance commitment may be affected by changes in identification and internalised commitment – for example, the dissolution of shared values between the individual and the organisation, or changes in the nature of the organisation’s business, may lower individuals’ internalised and identification commitment, thereby leaving compliance commitment as the main basis of employee attachment. Many strategies identified for overcoming barriers to change (see, for example, Smither, 1994) emphasise the need to ensure continued employee commitment in times of change. Indeed, it can be argued that employee commitment plays a central role in the management of change process, both from the perspective of consolidating change and also from that of the likely future success of ongoing change programmes.

Relationships between employee commitment and individual behaviour Commitment to organisations has variously been found to be positively related to such organisational outcomes as job satisfaction (Bateman and Strasser, 1984; Mowday et al., 1982), motivation (Mowday et al., 1979) and attendance (i.e. lower rates of absenteeism) (Dalton and Mesch, 1990; Ho, 1997; Martocchio, 1994; Mathieu and Zajac, 1990; Steers and Rhodes, 1978). At the same time, commitment has been found to be negatively related to outcomes such as absenteeism (again) and labour turnover (Cotton and Tuttle, 1986; Clegg, 1983). Mowday et al. (1982) concluded that highly committed employees wish to remain with their employing organisations.

That is not to say, however, that such relationships are straightforward and directly observable; indeed, it appears that other variables moderate these relationships to an extent (Matthieu and Zajac, 1990). For example, and in keeping with this, Jaros et al. (1993) found that commitment affects turnover only indirectly, through withdrawal intentions. However, what is important from the perspective of the present study is that such relationships do exist, and are associated with potentially positive outcomes for the organisation. Adopting the theoretically sound approach of multi-dimensional commitment (O’Reilly and Chatman, 1986; Jaros et al., 1993), a number of studies have illustrated the importance of having employees whose commitment is based on more than simple compliance. Smith et al. (1983) argue that many key behaviours in organisations rely on acts of co-operation, altruism and spontaneous unrewarded help from employees. O’Reilly and Chatman (1986) found commitment based on internalisation to be significantly related to both intrarole behaviour (behaviour expected as part of the job, including attendance for work) and extrarole behaviour (prosocial acts beyond what is outlined in the job description; actions for which the individual receives no immediate reward but which benefit the wider organisation, including higher attendance levels), tenure intentions and turnover. Attachment based on identification or pride in affiliation is also related to extrarole behaviour, tenure intentions and turnover. Compliance attachment, on the other hand, was not found to be significantly related to either intrarole or extrarole behaviour (i.e. to have no direct relationships with attendance rates) or turnover, but was negatively related to intention to remain with the organisation.

The impact of absence management policies While employee absence can be shown to be rooted in various sources, the literature is reasonably consistent in the view that more stringent absence management policies can mitigate against high levels of absence. Dalton and Todor (1993, p. 207), picking up on a number of earlier studies, argued that ‘‘organisations can drastically reduce the extent of employee absenteeism by adopting policies which deter, not encourage, absenteeism’’, and further that ‘‘it should be noted that these policies do not include punishing an employee for being absent or

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Hadyn Bennett Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government? Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 430–441

direct discipline of any kind; rather, the reductions in absenteeism may merely reflect the existence of some reasonable policy which does not encourage employee absenteeism’’. In similar vein, Leigh (1981) found liberal sick leave policies to lead to higher rates of absenteeism; Winkler (1980) noted a requirement to report absence directly to line management and provide certified evidence of the reason for the absence to be associated with lower absence levels, findings also supported by Dalton and Perry (1981). Finally, Farrell and Stamm (1988, p. 222) concluded absence control policies to be a ‘‘strong and stable correlate’’ of the level of absenteeism. Findings such as these led Dalton and Todor (1993, p. 207) to the conclusion that ‘‘organisational absence rates may be highly related to the control policies related to absenteeism’’. Furthermore, ‘‘absence rates are much higher for the more lenient policies’’.

Summary In summary, having established that employee absence is a major issue within the Northern Ireland Local Government sector (Local Governement Auditor, 1999) and public sector absence in Northern Ireland incurs a major cost to the local economy (CBI, 2001), and that absence is associated with a range of features pertaining to the individual’s relationship with the organisation, it was considered appropriate to examine the perceived causes of absence within local government in order to establish the extent to which employee commitment (associated with employee morale and motivation, and indirectly with all aspects of organisational systems and processes) is, or is perceived to be, causing employee absence. This is particularly relevant within the context of the ongoing, and often far-reaching, organisational change which is characteristic of the sector, since change is dependent on commitment for success and yet simultaneously constitutes a major threat to that very commitment. The establishment of relationships between employee commitment and absence would also have significant implications for attendance management within local government organisations. Given the role played by absence management policies in moderating the extent of employee absence, the impact of such policies is also considered in the analysis.

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Methodology A multi-method approach was adopted to gather data from participating local government organisations within Northern Ireland. Initially, secondary statistical data was sought from all 26 district councils within the region in an attempt to quantify the scale of the absence problem. Semistructured interviews conducted with human resource management practitioners within each local council served to confirm the findings of the statistical analysis, thus facilitating internal validation of the data. To examine relationships between perceptions about employee commitment and employee absence, semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions were sought within each local council. This involved convening semi-structured interviews with human resource managers, and group discussions with line managers and also groups of high and low absence employees within each local council area. These interviews provided the three groups of respondents – human resource practitioners, line managers and employees – with the opportunity to discuss a variety of issues which they considered to be relevant to the issue of employee absence and its management. After initial identification of line management and employees, selection for participation in the focus group discussions was carried out on a random basis across councils. Random samples of ten line managers and up to ten employees with both low and high absence records were selected within each local council area and were invited to participate in the focus group discussions. Semi-structured interviews with human resource practitioners from 25 out of the 26 district councils were used to ascertain the views and opinions of human resource personnel on a range of issues associated with employee absenteeism, including the perceived level and cost of absence, and the causes and effects of absence. This was followed up with focus group discussions with line management representatives from 23 of the 26 councils, and with two focus groups of employees drawn from each council – one consisting of ‘‘high’’ absence employees and the other ‘‘low’’. The inclusion of these three groups of respondents provided a unique insight into the absence issue and a number of common themes emerged from the responses relating to the issue of employee commitment and perceptions about organisational practices and procedures.

Hadyn Bennett Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government? Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 430–441

Results Statistical information was provided by 25 out of the 26 local councils and covered the reporting year 1998-1999 only. The data collected indicated that the levels of absenteeism within district councils in Northern Ireland showed a mean loss of 3.85 per cent (8.7 days) in the 1998-1999 year. The direct cost of this absence is estimated at £4.5 million. As might be expected, the statistical information highlighted variations in absence levels between councils; this concerned both the level of absence and the employee groups most affected. To illustrate, total time lost across councils ranged from a low of 2.5 per cent to 8.9 per cent, while total days lost varied from an average of 5.6 days to 18.9 days. Similarly, average days lost varied across employee grade – ranging from 6.8 days (senior management), to 9.4 days (clerical workers) and 10.5 days (manual workers).

Human resource practitioners As noted, human resource practitioners from 25 out of the 26 councils agreed to participate in a semi-structured interview. The extent of the absence problem was underlined by the fact that 68 per cent of those interviewed believed it to be either ‘‘very high’’ or ‘‘high’’, compared with 32 per cent perceiving it as ‘‘medium’’ or ‘‘low’’; 4 per cent indicated that absence levels were ‘‘very low’’. All of the interviewees who considered absence to be high argued this to be due to the fact that the majority of employees do not lose out financially if they are absent from work. A total of 20 per cent of interviewees felt high absence levels to be related to the prevailing organisational culture which incorporates acceptance of a set level of absence. The 24 per cent of interviewees who felt absence levels to be low or very low attributed this to the full implementation of a good absence management programme (50 per cent) or the fact that the organisation is located in a small town or community where employees are exposed (33 per cent) – tending to make it more difficult for individuals to fake sickness. A total of 33 per cent attributed their low absence figures to a lack of tolerance within the organisation regarding sickness absence, reflecting strict absence management policies and a belief that the proactive management of employee attendance can help promote high attendance. These findings can be interpreted as being indicative of a culture which emphasises compliance commitment, and which views

employees as being attached to the organisation primarily for financial reward. The majority of the human resource practitioner respondents argued that high rates of employee absence were to be expected as employees do not lose out financially if absent – indicating a belief that financial reward is the only outcome which employees are interested in receiving from the workplace. Even where absence was reported to be low, this was attributed to the rigorous management of absence (not to any desire on the part of employees to attend), or a belief that employees feel they would not be able to ‘‘get away’’ with absence. Again, both of these views lend weight to the contention that the basis of the employment relationship is perceived by human resource practitioners to be transactional and predicated on extrinsic rewards, as opposed to anything else. With regard to the causes of sickness absence, an interesting dichotomy emerged on the part of human resource practitioners with regard to the reported cause and the perceived causes. Reported causes were heavily dominated by minor and major illness, work related accidents and work place stress (reported by 80 per cent of those interviewed). However, in contrast, perceptions of the actual causes of absence, while still recognising minor illness, also identified low morale (92 per cent), stress (88 per cent), home and family commitments (88 per cent), lack of commitment (48 per cent), lack of motivation (48 per cent) and ‘‘entitlement’’ (28 per cent). It can be argued that these all indicate a perceived lack of internalised commitment on the part of employees by human resource practitioners, since high morale and motivation have been found to be positively associated with internalised commitment (O’Reilly and Chatman, 1986). This serves to confirm the contention that human resource practitioners view the basis of employee commitment as being compliance commitment, and not any shared sense of value with the organisation. Furthermore, this absence of internalised commitment is clearly perceived by human resource managers to be associated with higher rates of absence (to be a significant cause of absence).

Line managers Similar issues were explored in focus group discussions with line managers to those discussed with human resource practitioners. Line managers from 23 councils participated. These discussions revealed that many of the issues pertaining

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to employee absence are common across district councils within Northern Ireland; although some differences emerged, the pattern of response and discussion was repeated systematically in the sessions held across the region. All participants indicated that they were aware of the absence management policy existing within their organisation. However, the level of awareness differed between councils, and it was only in a small number of cases that managers demonstrated complete familiarity with the policy. Where this was this case, this was attributed to the level of emphasis placed on absence management within the particular organisation, the frequency with which managers use the policy and/or the amount of training provided on policy implementation. Initial discussions with line managers revealed confusion surrounding the issue of who is responsible for the management of employee absence – line managers or human resource practitioners. Within many councils it was implied that human resource departments should be doing more to manage absence in both a direct and indirect way. With regard to the latter, it was suggested that line managers require more support from their human resource management colleagues. In a minority of councils, managers indicated that absence management is the responsibility of line managers, or, alternatively, that it is the joint responsibility of human resource personnel and line managers. In the majority of councils, however, managers indicated that while they had some awareness of the policy, they considered the responsibility for policy implementation to lie mainly with the human resource department. In general, absence levels tend to be lower or improving in cases where line managers actively acknowledge their responsibility for absence management. It is worthy of note that 60 per cent of human resource practitioners contended that line managers are not implementing the existing employee absence policy, while 40 per cent believed absence to be high within their organisation because line managers are not taking responsibility for the problem. Once again, the views of line managers can be interpreted as indicating a compliance perception of employee commitment. Absence management is seen as a distinct issue, separate from other aspects of organisational functioning such as task and context design, employee responsibility and autonomy and so on. Also, a rigorous procedural approach to absence management was found to produce positive results,

indicating a controlling, compliance approach to employee management. A striking feature of absence management in local government is the lack of consistency that operates both within and between councils with regard to policy implementation concerning absence. Many managers reported that differences exist in the implementation of absence management policies between departments, as well as between councils. The level of consistency that operates within councils appears to be linked to the overall level of absenteeism within the organisation. The discussions revealed variations across councils in the level of emphasis placed on the issue of absence management. Where the issue of absence is acknowledged by senior management as being an issue that impacts upon the efficient and effective management of the organisation, and where this is supported by a well developed absence management policy which is fully implemented, supported by training, widely communicated, and where a high level of co-ordination exists between human resource departments and other operational units, the tendency in such cases is towards lower levels of absence. Such states of affair were reported to be the exception within local government in Northern Ireland. In short, lower levels of absence were observed to be associated with more stringent absence management policies. This procedural approach to absence management is in keeping with a compliance perception of employee commitment, in which employees are seen as a resource to be managed and controlled hierarchically. The inconsistencies which characterise the awareness and implementation of absence management policies in local government extended to include the collection of absence management statistics. Many of the line managers felt this to be a function of human resources, and that such data are, and should be, collected centrally. However, the research showed that a more systematic approach to the collection of data is associated with lower levels of employee absence. Where it is organisational policy that line managers collect data and forward these to human resources there is a tendency towards the availability of more comprehensive and accurate information. Specifically within Northern Ireland local councils, a majority of line managers were of the opinion that many of the difficulties which they face in relation to absence management stem from the fact that communication is poor within their organisation, and that in many cases the

Hadyn Bennett Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government? Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 430–441

absence management policy within their organisation has not been communicated to them, or to other employees within the organisation. With regard to specific employee groupings, the discussions with line managers made frequent reference to direct service organisation (‘‘operating core’’, Mintzberg, 1983) staff (DSO Staff) – with comments suggesting absenteeism previously to have been a major problem with this particular employee group. However, developments such as CCT and the subsequent distribution of surplus share (efficiency savings) among employees were considered to have had a positive effect upon employee absence; it was noted, however, that the positive effects associated with the distribution of surplus share were transitory and not long term. It can also be noted, of course, that such payments in essence amount to ‘‘payment for attendance’’, and clearly reflect an emphasis on transactional, or compliance, commitment. Leisure centre employees were consistently reported as being a problematic group with regard to absence, a fact attributed to the boring and repetitive nature of their work, the unpleasant working environment and lack of career opportunities. Many commented on an increase in absence for clerical workers, particularly at lower employee grades. This was attributed in many instances to increased job demands, while changes in the reward structure and job grading system do not reflect the new levels of demands being placed. These findings in relation to specific employee groups reveal much about line managers’ perceptions of employee commitment. Improvements noted in the absence levels of DSO staff on the distribution of surplus clearly indicate a transaction, or compliance, view of employee commitment (while the employees’ behaviour, in terms of improved attendance, it must be noted, also supports this approach). Similarly, increased absence rates on the part of clerical workers are attributed to the fact that these employees are now striking an inferior ‘‘compliance’’ deal to that which existed before – job demands have increased while reward structures and grading have not been amended to reflect the increased levels of demand. An absence of internalised commitment is hinted at in the attribution of absence to boring and repetitive work on the part of leisure centre staff. Low internalised commitment is also reflected in that line managers identified employee morale as

being low in the majority of councils, a fact attributed to the many changes that have occurred within local government organisations. Organisational change has previously been found to be eroded by organisational development, as fundamental changes to the organisation dissolve the shared values on which internalised commitment is grounded (Bennett and Durkin, 2000). A majority of line managers also expressed the opinion that many of those working within local government are stuck with a legacy of the past, and find it extremely difficult to think or to act differently than in a previous era. This also supports the contention that internalised commitment is low, in that employees have not, as yet, internalised the new culture. This argument is further supported by the contention of many that the new demands being placed on councils necessitate a change in organisational culture involving a shift in the mindset, attitudes, values and beliefs of employees. As well as being attributable to change, low levels of morale were also attributed to the style of management that prevails within district councils. Employee involvement in the decision-making process and the commitment of the organisation to the training and development of its employees were considered to have a positive effect upon morale and attendance; however, the view of managers participating in the focus group discussions would suggest that such practices are not the norm within Northern Ireland’s district councils. Again, the absence of employee involvement and employee development is clearly indicative of the adoption of a compliance approach to commitment on the part of local government organisations – compliance in return for extrinsic reward summarises the extent of employee psychological attachment which is being sought. Involving employees in decision making, and involvement in employee development (personal and otherwise) would all represent important elements of a programme aimed at fostering internalised commitment.

Employees As noted, two focus groups, comprising ‘‘high’’ and ‘‘low’’ absence employees, were convened within each council. While the level of participation in these discussions varied across councils, it was interesting to note that in four councils no high absence employees presented for discussions, and these sessions therefore had to be abandoned. In general terms, participants indicated that they were aware of the existence of an

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absence management policy, but few respondents indicated a comprehensive knowledge of its outworkings. Those within high absence groups demonstrated a higher level of familiarity, while, interestingly, those in lower absence groups tended to be much more relaxed in their views and attitudes towards absence and its management. However, in the case of councils where attendance management is made a priority, all employees indicated a higher level of awareness of the policy. It became apparent from the discussions that there exists much inconsistency within councils regarding the implementation of the attendance management policy. This inconsistency appears to apply particularly to the practice of carrying out return to work interviews. Greater consistency with policy implementation in respect of return to work interviews, and absence policies generally, is found where the council places more emphasis upon attendance management. For employees, the perception was that the occurrence of return to work interviews depended on the nature of the relationship between manager and employee – where the relationship is good, the interview is less likely to occur. Further, employee attitudes to the return to work interview were influenced by the quality of the relationships between management and staff. Where employees felt the relationship to be good and where employees are valued (the minority of cases), a positive attitude was expressed towards these interviews, and they were considered to be a signal of care for the employee on the part of the organisation. In other cases – the majority – they are seen as intrusive and an unnecessary control mechanism. Employees appear to be fearful of their employment record in cases where attendance management is given a priority by the organisation. Coupled with the finding that making attendance management a priority produces lower absence rates, it appears that prioritising is useful in driving down absence through fear – again, indicating a compliance approach to securing employee commitment. Many of those in low absence groups were of the opinion that malingering occurs, with low absence groups being of the opinion that about 60 per cent of illnesses fall into this category. Many also believed that where trade unions are active they tend to encourage sickness absence as an entitlement, suggesting a compliance approach to the organisation on the part of employees.

For the most part, participants showed little awareness of the extent to which absence affects the organisation’s performance or the costs associated with it. This clearly indicates low levels of commitment other than compliance in return for payment – employees appear to be interested only in their own personal circumstances and not in the wider organisation. The absence of internalised commitment on the part of employees as a cause of employee absence was further indicated by a number of findings. The overwhelming majority of respondents commented that employee morale within local government is low; however, support and co-operation among groups of co-workers was reported to be high. Low morale was attributed to a number of factors, and was commonly seen as being a root cause of many organisational problems including employee absence. However, despite the low morale, terms and conditions of employment were generally regarded as being good, and, especially in more remote areas, desire to leave the organisation is low. Employees in general do not feel valued by management or the organisation (a classic symptom of low levels of internalised commitment) and noted this as a cause of absence. Many reported an absence of praise for a job well done, but criticism for failing to meet targets. A ‘‘them’’ and ‘‘us’’ attitude was reported between management and staff, and between ‘‘blue’’ and ‘‘white’’ collar workers. Participants frequently spoke of a ‘‘blame’’ culture and identified an unwillingness to accept responsibility across all grades of employees, coupled with high efforts to find scapegoats for problems. Employees reported little or no emphasis to be placed upon staff development (indicating a perception that mechanical compliance is all that is required from employees). Many believed managers to have no interest in their staff or their development, and inequalities were perceived in terms of development opportunities for management and staff. Much work is considered to be boring, and employees feel that while management are aware of this nothing is done to improve the design of the job and enhance its motivating potential. Management was not perceived as being encouraging of staff to be innovative or act of their own initiative. Senior level vacancies were reported as being filled by ‘‘outsiders’’, on the basis that such individuals are more likely to be innovative and bring an approach to management which is more in keeping with the new demands being placed upon local government

Hadyn Bennett Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government? Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 430–441

organisations. However, these are the very skills and practices which existing employees feel they are not being allowed to develop – in their view, creativity and innovation are stifled at more junior levels within local government organisations. This further erodes employee morale, contributing both directly and indirectly to increased absence levels. Good relationships between management and staff foster a higher level of attendance. However, the view was expressed on many occasions that poor quality relationships frequently exist. Many also perceived a lack of trust between management and staff, and a lack of mutual respect – all aspects which were perceived to have a negative impact upon absenteeism. The high level of bureaucracy which exists within local government was perceived to be an impediment to rapid response and innovative problem-solving activity. Management was perceived to be conservative in outlook and as having fixed views – many organisations were described as being over managed and under-led. Communications were commonly perceived to be poor within local government organisations; management was perceived to be hoarders of information which is only released in a limited and controlled way. This adds further to fostering distrust and low morale. Additional job demands, a more pressing environment, poor relationships between management and staff and low morale were all perceived to be fostering an increasing level of employee stress, thereby contributing both directly and indirectly to high levels of absenteeism. This has been exacerbated by the level of change that has occurred and how the change process has been managed. In addition, employees are experiencing lower levels of job security. In summary, employee views on morale, lack of involvement, autonomy and discretion, dissatisfaction with organisational structures and communication, and lack of opportunities for staff development, all indicate low levels of internalised and identification commitment. However, employees continue to express general satisfaction with their terms and conditions of employment, despite the low levels of morale which arise from various sources. The outcome of these two sets of findings is that local government organisations do not benefit from the performance outcomes associated with internalised commitment, while at the same time, relative satisfaction with terms and conditions and a perceived lack of

opportunity to strike a better deal elsewhere ensure relatively low staff turnover, and, it seems likely, a continuance of the status quo.

Discussion Against a background of over a decade of change initiatives, employee absence has been identified as being a major problem for local government organisations (Local Government Auditor, 1999). The results of the present study indicate that for the reporting year 1998/1999 (the last year for which full data were available) district councils in Northern Ireland showed a mean loss of 8.7 days per employee (3.85 per cent of working days), at an estimated direct cost of £4.5 million. This estimate does not include the indirect costs of the absence, which many writers (for example, Ho, 1997) argue to outweigh the direct costs experienced. Recognising much employee absence to be rooted in organisational and managerial practices, including the way in which tasks or the work context are organised, the structure of the organisation and nature of the management hierarchy, and low levels of employee responsibility, autonomy and job satisfaction, this paper has examined perceptions of the causes of employee absence from three perspectives – those of human resource practitioners, line managers and employees. The primary objective has been to establish the extent to which such features may be causes of employee absence within local government in Northern Ireland. Approaches to organisational commitment have been utilised to examine managerial and organisational practices in relation to the impact which these might be having on employee absence. The commitment construct was considered to be particularly useful in this regard since it integrates all aspects of organisational and managerial practice. While the interviews and focus group discussions provided three distinct perspectives on the absence issue, a number of common themes emerge. It is apparent that both human resource practitioners and line managers adopt a compliance view of employees’ relationships with the workplace i.e. one in which the primary basis of employee commitment is extrinsic reward. This was evidenced, inter alia, by the views of human resource practitioners that employees are content to absent themselves since they do not lose out financially, and by the view of line managers that absence management is a distinct issue which should be managed by the human resources

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department. Line managers also expressed the view that distribution of surpluses (effectively payment for attendance) could have a positive impact on attendance rates. Both human resource managers and line managers also concluded that the rigorous application of absence management policies could bring about positive improvements to absence rates, again indicating a controlling approach to management in which compliance in return for extrinsic rewards lies at the heart of the employment relationship. That said, human resource practitioners and line managers both clearly recognised the absence of internalised commitment, evidenced by low morale, low motivation, and low job satisfaction, and generated by poor communications, lack of autonomy and little or no employee development, to be a major contributor to absence rates. An extensive diet of organisational change to date was also attributed as having helped to erode satisfaction and morale in the workplace. These characteristics were also identified by employees as being characteristic features of organisational life, indicating little or no internalised commitment, and fostering an environment in which the employee’s only attachment to the organisation comes by virtue of extrinsic rewards. On the basis of these findings, local government organisations in Northern Ireland appear to have reached an impasse in which both management and employees recognise the absence of internalised commitment, and are suffering from the consequences of this. In the case of the organisation, these consequences take the form of high absence rates and their attendant costs, and also reduced efficiency arising from low morale and motivation. For employees, the costs arise from workplace stress, lack of fulfilment, and other illnesses induced by poor quality of working life. Within this context, local government organisations are faced with a number of options to address these costs. The results of the research indicated that the rigorous application of absence management policies can be successful in lowering absence rates; however, employees indicated that such practices instil fear, and within this context the prospects for long term success with such strategies are uncertain. It can be argued that seeking to control absence in this way would further cement a compliance/transactional approach to employee management, and would ignore the issues identified by both management and employees as lying at the root of the absence issue. An alternative

approach would involve the organisation attempting to re-establish (or in some cases – establish) high levels of internalised commitment, predicated on shared values between the organisation and the individual and mutual investment and trust by each party (management and employees) in the other. Establishing internalised commitment would enable both parties to benefit from the performance benefits associated with internalised commitment. Additionally, it can be argued that successful change management is dependent on high levels of employee commitment to both the organisation and the change process; without the establishment of high levels of internalised commitment the prospects for successful change within local government organisations (which the environment demands) are poor.

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Participation as the key to successful change – a public sector case study

Geraldine O’Brien Michael Smurfit Graduate School of Business, University College Dublin, Blackrock, Ireland

Keywords Organizational change, Participation, Human resource development, Public sector, Ireland, Case studies

Abstract Public sector reform has focussed attention on how different models of change can contribute to organizational metamorphosis. Traditional ‘‘top down’’ approaches are unlikely to achieve the necessary change. Instead, using a case study of an Irish public sector organization, this article argues that direct participation, involving frontline staff, can play a key role in ensuring acceptance of change and in creating the conditions for employees to make effective contributions to their organization. Direct participation plays a vital role in employee development. However, it also places demands on organizations to adopt a more facilitative and supportive style of management and to put in place mechanisms that will ensure that participation becomes an integral part of the work process.

Received: December 2001 Revised: May 2002 Accepted: June 2002

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Introduction New approaches to public management evident across Europe have fostered a hitherto unknown sense of managerialism with an emphasis upon strategic management and change (Ferlie et al., 1996; Hood, 1991). The impetus for many reform programmes stems from the widespread belief that the traditional model of the civil service, in contrast to private sector management techniques, is not very successful at adapting to rapid rates of social change (McNamara, 1995; O’Dowd and Hastings, 1998). For example, in the UK the public sector has been diagnosed as ‘‘bloated, wasteful, over-bureaucratic, and underperforming’’ (Ferlie et al., 1996). In the Republic of Ireland, public sector reform has been gathering momentum since the 1994 launch of the strategic management initiative (SMI) (Reynolds, 1994). The SMI is aimed at reducing bureaucracy, providing excellent service to the public through a customer-focused culture, more effective and efficient use of resources and better policy coordination between departments (Humphreys and Worth-Butler, 1999). Delivering Better Government (Government of Ireland, 1996) states clearly that human resource management is to be a major plank of the SMI and that there has to be employee involvement in and ownership of the process. Otherwise ‘‘there is a danger that the SMI could be marginalised as the preserve of senior public servants . . .’’ (Boyle, 1998, p. 3). Better Local Government: A Programme for Change (Department of the Environment, 1996) makes very similar points for the local government sector. Since the launch of the SMI in 1994, a number of components of a new strategy have been developed and integrated and it has been argued that these The research register for this journal is available at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/researchregisters

developments represent the most comprehensive and integrated programme for change ever undertaken within the Irish public sector (O’Dowd and Hastings, 1998). Public sector managers need to adopt an approach to the management of reform programmes that is appropriate to the dilemmas and challenges facing them. However, as Dunphy and Stace (1993) argue, there is no single approach which meets the needs of all situations and objectives. This article examines one particular approach to the management of change that has been adopted by a department in the Irish civil service. The emphasis was on a ‘‘bottom-up’’ approach entailing significant participation by employees. By presenting the case study the article seeks to demonstrate that such an approach has relevance for the public sector despite the fact that many (e.g. McConkie, 1993) have argued that the application of such an approach is a difficult undertaking in the public sector arena. The article begins by reviewing the literature on change in the public sector. It then moves on to a discussion of change management, drawing particular attention to the literature on what has been termed the soft systems approach (Senior, 2002) with its emphasis on participation as a strategy for achieving change. The background to the research and the design and methodology adopted are then described. This is followed by a presentation of the case study and a discussion of the findings.

Management of change in the public sector The ‘‘new public management’’ is not a parochial Irish or British development but an international trend in public administration observable from the mid-1970s onwards The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/0143-7739.htm

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(Hood, 1991; Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 1999). The implementation of government reform plans has necessitated far-reaching programmes of change, the desired outcome of which is organizational transformation. Many of these change programmes rely on ‘‘top-down radical shock strategies and the exercise of political clout’’ (Ferlie et al., 1996, p. 86), are formulated by groups of knowledgeable senior managers, and the programme of strategies, structures and processes for implementation are presented, more or less, as a fait accompli to organizational members, who are expected to adapt immediately without objection. However, the organization’s ability to cope with the barrage of changes to which it is being subjected would appear to be limited by the attitude of management and staff and their receptiveness to new ideas. According to Ferlie et al. (1996), the language in respect of cultural change in the public sector has changed faster than the reality. Nadler (1988) has identified resistance to change as one of the major problems associated with the change process. Individuals may resist change because of past personal investments, uncertainty, identification with previous organizational routines and ideological objections (Thornhill et al., 2000). Reactions will also be shaped by perceptions about the need for and nature of change as well as the way in which it is implemented. Employees may, for example, consider commerciallyoriented working practices to be at odds with traditional public service values (Dopson and Stewart, 1990). In other words, the culture is a potent tripwire that can act as a major impediment to the transformation required to meet the demands imposed by the external environment (McHugh et al., 2000; Bate, 1996; Brooks and Bate, 1994). As Senior (2002, p. 123) puts it ‘‘ . . . regardless of how well change might be planned in terms of the more formal organizational characteristics, it is the hidden informal aspects of organizational life which will act to help or hinder it’’. Pfeffer (1994) argues that long-term competitive advantage can only be achieved through ‘‘unleashing the power of the workforce’’. However, top-down approaches to change management do not have much success in ‘‘winning the hearts and minds of employees’’. They do not work because they typically fail to tackle three interrelated structural-cum-attitudinal factors – the requirement for co-ordination through teamwork, the need for commitment, and the need to develop new competencies. Companywide change programmes tend to address one

only or, at best, two of these and where they dwell on the creation of commitment, it is usually only at a very superficial level (Hendry, 1995). Many writers (for example, Butcher and Atkinson, 1999; Quinn, 1985; Bartlett and Ghoshal, 1993; Gaster, 1995) have suggested that originating, developing and promoting change initiatives from the lower levels can be an effective process of change. Nadler and Tushman (1998), for example, suggest that allowing people to participate in the early diagnosis of problems, in the design of solutions, in planning the implementation, or in the actual execution helps to motivate constructive behaviour during the transition phase. Beer et al. (1990) are, perhaps, the most noted advocates of the ‘‘bottom-up’’ approach to change management. They argue that change needs to occur at the level of the employee’s job rather than as a consequence of senior management’s edicts in relation to people’s values. For Beer et al. (1990) the change process commences in an operational part of the organization by focusing on a specific business issue and the strategy to deal with that issue will emerge through the efforts of those engaged in this situation. Beer et al.’s (1990) approach emphasises individuals’ shared commitment and vision as a prerequisite to change. Developing people’s abilities enables change, whilst the desire to learn is enhanced by improved co-ordination and the need to work differently to solve concrete problems. Subsequent results generate stronger commitment to change leading to a mutually reinforcing cycle of increased commitment, co-ordination and abilities. Senior management’s role in ‘‘bottom-up’’ change is to specify the general direction and provide a climate for change as well as to spread lessons from both successes and failures (Beer et al., 1990; Armstrong, 1997). Beer et al.’s (1990) approach has much in common with the highly participative organizational development (OD) approach. Beer’s most recent writing on the subject (Beer and Nohria, 2000), based on 40 years of studying the nature of corporate change, points to two basic archetypes, or theories of change: Theory E (with its objective of maximising shareholder value) and Theory O (focused on developing the organization’s culture and its human capabilities, and promoting organizational learning). The human capability development element of Theory O is closely aligned with the approach outlined above (Beer et al., 1990) and with the OD approach. Within the public sector, the transition from maintenance management to the ‘‘management of change’’ has included a focus on the OD tradition as

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an ‘‘alternative and more humanistic management style’’ (Ferlie et al., 1996, p. 6). OD represents a planned, participatory, ‘‘normative-reeducative’’ and long-term approach to improving an organization’s problem solving and renewal processes (French and Bell, 1990). As such it is a soft systems model aimed at managing change in situations of soft complexity (Senior, 2002). One of the distinguishing features of ‘‘organizational messes’’ (Ackoff, 1993) or ‘‘soft problems’’ (McCalman and Paton, 1992) is that there is no agreement on what constitutes the problem, let alone what changes are required. In these situations, according to Senior (2002, p. 301), one is ‘‘looking to challenge not just the means of doing things but also to challenge the purposes and why things are done the way they are at all’’. The focus is on dissolving rather than just solving problems (Ackoff, 1993). Central to the notion of OD is the idea that people, individually and collectively, are the key to successful change. At the core of OD is a strong humanist and democratic orientation (Coram and Burnes, 2001). The values espoused in OD are empowerment, open communications, a culture of collaboration, the promotion of continuous learning and facilitiating ownership of the change process and its outcomes (Hurley et al., 1992). In OD there is an assumption that organizations generally under-value and under-utilise their employees and that, given the opportunity, employees are capable of taking on additional responsibilities and making valuable contributions to the achievement of organizational goals (Senior, 2002; Paton and McCalman, 2000). OD practitioners tend to stress that their interventions are as much about creating a learning environment that allows the participants to gain new insights into themselves and their circumstances as it is about the management of change. It is only through this learning process that people can willingly come to see the need for and accept change (Burnes, 2000). A number of criticisms have been levelled against OD as a model of change (see, for example, Senior, 2002; Coram and Burnes, 2001; Burnes, 2000; Burnes and Salauroo, 1995; McConkie, 1993). It has been pointed out that the application of OD in public sector organizations is fraught with difficulties. McConkie (1993) points to the fact that public sector organizations demonstrate bureaucratic norms and behaviour patterns that would be at odds with the principles of OD. Furthermore, the emphasis placed on

accountability and reporting relationships and the existence of multiple (and sometimes conflicting) interests within and surrounding such organizations can make it difficult, in the first place, to get support and approval for OD initiatives and, second, to ensure the smooth progress of the initiative. Of particular relevance is the fact that decision making in public sector organizations tends to be pushed upwards towards the top of the organization, whereas OD seeks to engage the wider group of organizational members in the decision-making process. However, on a more positive note, Senior (2002) stresses that the changes that have already taken place in much of the public sector may well have brought in their train new outlooks that will make the OD model for change more realistic and easier to apply. Nevertheless, she points out that OD practitioners have to recognise the need for considerable flexibility in the application of the OD model of change in these particular types of change scenarios.

Participation as a strategy for achieving change The shift from the traditional model of tight central control, separation of functions and diffusion of responsibility towards a model based around strategic goal setting, decentralisation, effective management systems, greater responsibility and accountability and ensuring quality customer service presents a number of significant challenges to those in management positions within the public sector (Backoff et al., 1993). Coram and Burnes (2001) maintain that it is the emphasis on public accountability, demonstrating value for money and meeting the increasing expectations of the general public and politicians in regard to service levels and quality that sets public sector managers apart from their private sector counterparts. Shaw and Nadler (1991) suggest that public sector organizations need to move far beyond the machine-like, bureaucratic, and rigid control model of organization that has been part of our heritage for close to 100 years. However, they believe that the flexibility and responsiveness needed to survive in the increasingly demanding marketplace is difficult to extract from a traditional structure that relies on ‘‘undesirable and burdensome rules and regulations, too much ‘paperwork’ and overweaning means of control’’ (Senior, 2002, p. 75). The tendency to elevate decisions to senior levels will not only overwhelm the

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senior management group, but will also frustrate those at lower levels who feel bypassed. Indeed, the wholehearted adoption of customer service values often requires nothing short of a fundamental reorientation of the public sector organization and a radical change in its prevailing culture (Humphreys et al., 1999). These organizations need to become sensitive to how the treatment by managers of their staff in turn affects attitudes towards the public. According to Duncan (1992), within the context of public sector reform there is a powerful case for empowering ‘‘front-line’’ employees, as part of a shift to a culture based on trust, openness, encouragement and support. Employee participation, it is argued, is perhaps the most powerful lever management can use to gain acceptance of change (Judson, 1991). Among the strongest advocates of involvement is Walton (1985). He maintains that workers respond best when their responsibilities are extended, when they are encouraged to contribute and are not tightly controlled by management. Participation may also result in better solutions. In short, through direct participation, employees work harder as well as smarter (Ichniowski et al., 1996). According to Marchington and Wilkinson (2000), direct participation practices fall into four categories: downward communications; upward problem solving; task participation; team-working and self-management. Effective participation is dependent on a number of conditions. For example, in selecting issues it is advisable to include those that may be of greatest concern to employees (Marchington and Wilkinson, 2000). It is also important that the arrangements for participation be likely to produce concrete results: ‘‘People are sceptical about participation just for show, without any impact on substance . . .’’ (Kanter, 1983, p. 254). A further prerequisite for participation is an absence of commitment by the organization to any single course of action. In other words the manager must be open-minded to the possibility of alternative approaches (Judson, 1991). The effectiveness of direct participation as a change strategy is based on the assumption that it will not give rise to conflict with other organizational or personal goals (Thornhill et al., 2000). However, several potentially conflicting aspects have been identified in the literature (e.g. Marchington et al., 1993; Kotter and Schlesinger, 1979). For example, participation requires a willingness by managers to share decision making with

lower level workers, and that these workers are willing to share responsibility for decisions (Bartkus, 1997). However, most if not all large public sector organizations exhibit a bureaucratic form of organization structure which of its nature may inhibit participation. McHugh and Bennett’s (1999) study of the change process in a large public sector agency graphically illustrates the difficulties faced by such organizations in instituting change. The adherence of managers to old ways of doing things and their reluctance to give up their control was highlighted. In addition to resistance to change, Nadler (1988) has identified the problem of organizational control and power as the other two major problems associated with the transition process. Baden-Fuller and Stopford (1992, p. 188) point out that ‘‘many middle managers feel their status rests heavily on their power to tell others what to do’’. Examples are not hard to find in the Irish public sector of a less than enthusiastic reception by line managers of HRM innovations (Roche, 1998). But McHugh and Bennett (1999) also highlight management’s lack of understanding of the concepts of teamwork and empowerment, which confirms Boyle’s (1998) view that true participation depends on the manager’s competence in applying process skills. In addition to management commitment, a basic requirement is that the people involved want to be involved and to participate. Participation will not work with people who are passive or apathetic (Kanter, 1983). Barnhart (1997) points out that, in the presence of bureaucratic structures, employees may take comfort from following centrally-determined rules and regulations and any shift to a more participative approach may represent a significant challenge to the status quo. The credibility of organizational approaches to participation may also be undermined by employee perceptions about a variety of organizational characteristics and circumstances. Reichers et al. (1997) suggest that organizational change efforts are the appropriate target of employee cynicism. The sustainability of participation initiatives can be affected by the congruence between management’s words and deeds during the transformation period. Many of the schema-based words may indeed change and the guidelines of the past may be in doubt but inconsistency of managerial words and deeds will create organizational dilemmas and/or chaos that will seriously impede or destroy the transformation (Poole, 1998). The above arguments highlight many of the issues that are likely to face individuals

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and organizations charged with the task of bringing about a shift in organizational relationships, based on participation. However, if public sector organizations are to achieve the significant and on-going improvement in the quality of public services that is the key objective of their reform programmes, they must take the necessary steps to alter the way in which they manage their activities and their people. Despite the inherent difficulties, it is contended that the approach to organizational change management advocated by Beer et al. (1990), based on direct participation by employees in ‘‘task alignment’’ and adhering to many of the principles of the OD approach, has much to commend it as an approach for a governmental and publicly accountable organization to adopt. This is illustrated below through a case study of one Irish public sector organization, Social Welfare Services (SWS).

The organization The role of SWS is to deliver and manage the Irish social, community and family welfare schemes. The majority of the 4,000 staff is employed within local offices where personnel have direct contact with the public. Each individual has a tightly defined job, is considered to have an identifiable role, and is supported by rules and procedures that guide decision making. SWS has been involved in a formal strategic planning process since the launch of SMI in 1994, and the aspect of that initiative that impinges most directly on the work of staff in local offices is the focus on improving and modernising service delivery systems (Hynes, 1996). The stimulus for SWS’s involvement in the research was provided by an invitation in 1996 to participate in a European Commission-funded (LEONARDO) human resource development (HRD) project. The project involved a partnership of one social service organization and one university from each of the following regions: Ireland, the UK, Belgium/Holland and Sweden. The primary aim of the transnational project was to provide an opportunity for relatively junior staff within social service organizations to acquire learning skills that would enable them to cope with the process of organizational change. At the regional level this was to be operationalised by the university partner working with the organization on issues that complemented the aims of the LEONARDO project but which were key to developments taking place

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within that organization. As such, the remit of the project was very broad.

Research design and methodology The primary purpose of the project was to develop a HRD initiative that would equip relatively junior staff with the skills and competencies to cope effectively with the challenge of continuous change. The project approach adopted matches the description of action research as outlined by Thornhill et al. (2000) and Senior (2002), whereby the different stages of the project took into account the assessment of the outcomes of the earlier stages of the initiative. Each component of the project (diagnosis, data gathering, feedback, data discussion/ elaboration, competency building, action planning, action and evaluation) and the associated processes conformed to the framework for OD outlined in the literature (e.g. Senior, 2002) and also to the principles proposed by Beer et al. (1990). Hence, the project could be considered to have operated in accordance with best practice. It became clear early on that maximum benefit would be derived from the LEONARDO project if the number of participating staff and offices was limited. Two Dublin local offices became the focus of investigation. They were of similar size, each having around 50 employees who were members of the operating core (Mintzberg, 1983). A project steering group was assigned the task of designing the broad outline of the project and overseeing its operation. Members included the director, the SMI coordinator, key individuals at middle management level in the targeted offices, a representative from the training unit and the university partner. There were various strands to the project, each of which fed into the research element. These included a staff attitude survey, an international exchange programme and focus groups. An essential element of action research is to monitor and evaluate what has taken place so as to be able to revise the intervention if necessary and to foster broader learning. As part of the evaluation process (and as an essential element of the LEONARDO project), the university partner carried out evaluation interviews. The nature of the project allowed the university partner to uncover and understand employee perspectives on change and the impact of direct participation initiatives in a natural setting over a period of time.

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Survey Although the process of organization change was not the primary focus of the project, it became clear that a unique opportunity existed to understand the change process from a front-line staff perspective. Thus the first element in the project consisted of a comprehensive, structured, self-report questionnaire. The questionnaire covered seven distinct topics: work and relationships, the work environment, career and training, change management, customer service, technology and the SWS organization. Of the 98 staff in the two offices, 94 completed the questionnaire, a response rate of 96 per cent. The iterative nature of the project allowed for ‘‘secondary design’’ (Kanter, 1982). In view of the high level of commitment demonstrated by employees in completing the questionnaire, it was decided to involve them even more actively (Judson, 1991) by seeking their suggestions as to how to address the key issues identified in the survey, communications and training. It was at this stage that fostering employee participation became far more pronounced as a key objective of the project. Communications as an issue was fast-tracked because it was of major concern to employees and had a significant impact on organizational effectiveness. It was also felt employees were well equipped to address the issue. It was decided to establish focus groups to progress this work. (At a later stage groups were set up to consider training. These groups are not referred to in this article.) Between the carrying out of the survey and the setting up of the focus groups, the exchange visits took place.

International exchange visits The second element of the project was an exchange programme, the aim of which was to afford relatively junior staff a development opportunity through experiencing life in a social welfare organization in another country. This was a core element of the transnational project. Each organization sent two employees to each of the other three countries for two weeks. So SWS sent two staff to Sweden, to the UK and to Belgium. In return, SWS played host to two Swedes, two Belgians and two Britons. Over 25 per cent of staff responded to an invitation to apply to participate. In a short written statement applicants outlined why they wished to participate. Each was interviewed by the SMI co-ordinator and the university partner and six staff, three from each office, were selected to participate. In the course of their visit exchange participants made a presentation about their

own organization to their hosts. They documented their experiences during the exchange and, on returning, made presentations to senior management and colleagues.

Focus groups A total of 13 staff, six in one office and seven in the other, responded to an invitation to participate in the focus groups that were to consider the communications problems experienced by the offices. The groups worked on their task, on and off, over an eight week period.

Evaluation interviews The university partner interviewed the six exchange participants, the five management members of the project steering group and a sample of 12 employees from the two offices (five of whom had also been focus group members) as part of the project evaluation. The interviews with the exchange participations examined their expectations regarding the exchanges, preparations for the visits, the visits themselves, the learning outcomes, the impact of participation on their work roles and relationships and their views regarding employee exchanges as a developmental tool. The interviews with the managers sought to establish their views regarding the exchange visits and focus groups as developmental tools for direct participants but also for the wider staff group who played host to the inbound visitors and who were actively engaged by the focus groups in the course of their work. They were also queried regarding the impact of such initiatives on managers’ roles and relationships. Their views regarding the design elements of both initiatives were also ascertained. The objective of the interviews with the broader group of staff was to guage their reactions to the LEONARDO project and its various components and also to establish their willingness, or otherwise, to engage with the different elements of the project. For those who had participated in the focus groups, additional questions related to that initiative (content, process and context issues) and any learning that might have ensued.

Results The original objective of the project was HRD related, albeit it with strong links to the change process. The particular approach adopted, with its action research orientation and emphasis on experiential and informal learning, brought into sharp focus key

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aspects of the management of organizational change. The presentation of findings will be restricted to the impact of the direct participation initiatives on staff commitment to the change process. (For a detailed discussion of the HRD outcomes of the project see McHugh and O’Brien (2001).) The attitude survey provided a snapshot, at the beginning of the project, of the employees’ perceptions of the management of change in SWS. On the other hand, analysis of the interview material illustrates the effect that the participation initiatives, in particular the exchange visits and focus groups, had on the employees’ attitudes to themselves and their capacity to engage with the change process. Finally, the impact of the participation initiatives on the management and staff’s perceptions of each other will be outlined.

Survey As noted earlier, the survey yielded a response rate of 96 per cent. Initially, there had been some scepticism about completing the questionnaire because never before had management sought employees’ views on work-related issues. An explanation of the context for the survey and assurances that their views on various aspects of organizational life would form the basis for instituting improvements in organizational efficiency and effectiveness as well as in the quality of working life helped to alleviate concerns. Furthermore, guarantees were given regarding confidentiality and time off work to complete the questionnaire was granted.

Profile Of the respondents, 72 per cent were female and 28 per cent male. Respondents were divided evenly between those who were under and those who were over 35 years of age. A total of 79 per cent had a secondary school education while 19 per cent had attained third level qualifications. The remaining few had primary level education; 31 percent occupied supervisory/junior management positions and 64 per cent worked in clerical positions. These figures mirrored the employment structure of SWS and the sample was thus viewed as representative of the entire organization.

Management of change in SWS The survey data highlighted an acceptance that on-going change is essential for organization survival and that problems are a natural side effect of change. Staff acknowledged that much had changed in SWS in recent times and this was viewed positively by 77 per cent. However, confidence in senior management’s ability to

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manage change was low. Over 70 per cent felt that managers failed to explain change well or to communicate down the line. Over 80 per cent felt that management did not fully appreciate the knock-on effects of change. According to respondents, a ‘‘top down’’ approach characterised the management of change and the majority of respondents were not usually involved in the planning of change. A total of 68 per cent felt that management provided inadequate training to help them cope with the changes.

Participation and communications Staff were not reluctant to make suggestions for improvements. In other words, there was a willingness to participate but few felt their suggestions would result in action. A universal message coming through was that staff did not feel appreciated. Over 80 per cent of respondents felt that senior management did not trust their judgment or view them as important. The same number felt there was insufficient contact between management and staff. Three-quarters felt there were inadequate opportunities for upward feedback and the same number was dissatisfied with their level of influence in decisions affecting their job and work life. The majority felt that their job did not make appropriate use of their skills, abilities or qualifications and would become increasingly routine. Two-thirds believed that SWS showed very little interest in developing people for better jobs. A strong message coming through in the responses was that management should seek the employees’ opinions in relation to change and involve them in the change process.

Exchange visits Evaluation interviews were held with each of the six individuals who participated in the exchange programme. This was the first time that such a development opportunity had been open to junior staff. Although the visits presented many challenges to the participants, they were also considered to have been of immense value, both personally and professionally. All participants remarked that as a result of their involvement they were much more confident in themselves and in their ability to cope with challenging situations. One individual commented: I never thought I was capable of doing anything bar the job I am doing. I have been forced to do it. I’ve done it and I feel, yes, I could do more if it was put to me . . . I don’t think I feel as inadequate as I used to. I definitely feel more confident.

The participants were proud to have been chosen as ambassadors for their

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organization, a role previously the preserve of management. Their ‘‘ambassadorial role’’ imposed a sense of responsibility and they felt obliged to bring something of benefit back to the organization. Working with other people with whom they shared and discussed their experiences helped to promote self-reflection and selfquestioning in the participants. As organization representatives, they frequently found themselves having to defend their own operating systems, and consequently they began, for the first time, to identify and appreciate the positive aspects of their own organization. As a result of participating in the exchange, individuals had altered their view of their proper role within their organization and had more confidence in asserting their ideas. Furthermore, having demonstrated to themselves their ability to cope with challenging situations, they were now keen to expand their skill base by doing other job tasks. Seven members of the wider group of staff in the offices were also interviewed. These staff participated in the exchange programme to the extent that they welcomed the overseas exchange visitors into their offices for two weeks. All of the interviewees felt that the inbound visit of the other transnational exchange participants had had a beneficial effect on the offices in terms of social relationships and people’s involvement in their work: I think the visit here was a way of getting all the staff together, getting them talking and I think it gave them an insight into what they were doing when they had to talk about it. It got the staff together socially as well as well as work wise.

Comparing and contrasting their approach to work, colleagues and clients with the visitors’ approach also encouraged an element of reflection and self-criticism in the employees: The inbound exchanges helped to give us a focus on ourselves. We really had to analyse ourselves and what we do and it hammered home to us that maybe things aren’t all that rosy and that some of the negative things highlighted in the survey were also being put across to our visitors.

The staff interviewees were asked why they thought only a quarter of the staff had come forward to be considered for the exchanges. It was suggested that a number of factors might have stopped people coming forward: domestic responsibilities precluding them from being away for two weeks; they lacked confidence in themselves; they thought there was too much work involved or they were

sceptical of the project and management’s motives.

Focus groups As outlined above, a focus group was initiated in each office to work on the key problem of communications. Five employees who participated in these groups were interviewed. The primary objective of the focus groups was to ascertain in greater detail the nature of the problems with communications in the two offices. A secondary aim was to use the focus group concept as an employee development tool. In support of this objective the training unit organized workshops for participants to explore the fields of communications and project management. A facilitator was available to the groups throughout the duration of their work. At different stages the groups made presentations to the project steering group and their local management on the progress of their work. Both focus groups consulted colleagues to ascertain the exact nature of the communications issues. One office decided its problems lay in internal communications and involved the circulation of information, office layout and social relations within the office. The other office’s problem was interoffice communications and extensive consultation with six offices highlighted a number of issues impacting on the offices’ operations and interrelationships. On completion of the analysis phase, the steering group extended the participative process by inviting the groups, in consultation with their management, to decide on and implement the necessary solutions. The interviews with staff revealed how the focus groups as a participation practice were perceived. As one focus group participant put it: I had never been on a project group like this before . . . we would never have been on any kind of project group or would have felt up to this. We were only small fish and whatever we had to say didn’t matter anyway because no one was going to listen to us or even if we did come up with something it wasn’t going to be acted upon. So that was great to see how we put this plan forward and the manager said ‘‘no problem with that’’ and to do whatever we wanted. She was quite behind it, whereas before we mightn’t even have thought of going to ask the manager to change the seating plan because ‘‘who am I to ask’’ or whatever. So I think it has given us all a bit of confidence about ourselves.

Participation in the focus groups fostered a new realism about managing change and the

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time frame within which it could be achieved: It makes you more realistic because you know that some things can’t change, no matter what . . . You can only do so much. We have all these great ideas and then say well, we can’t actually do that today, that’ll take the next week, the next month!

The process of consultation with their work colleagues had, according to participants, helped to break down barriers and to reduce resistance to change. As one interviewee put it: I think people were actually talking to one another in the focus group, people who wouldn’t normally mingle, and I think that is a great help.

And another: . . . we have proposed changes in the office, moving furniture here and there, simple things to help us with better communication. People are more positive about it. Up to that I don’t think you would have support from the staff . . . before people would have said ‘‘this is my seat, I have been sitting here for the last . . . and I’m not moving up there and that’s it’’. But when we really talked about it, people did feel that there were obstacles . . . to communications, i.e. filing cabinets in the way and things like that, whereas before we might have been happy to just hide behind them.

The focus group experience demonstrated to staff that they could initiate change instead of merely reacting to changes imposed on them by others. Furthermore, staff questioned why things were done in a particular way and highlighted inefficient work practices that had hitherto not been queried. In all they came up with 29 action points.

Impact of the project on management and employees’ perceptions of one another This section considers the impact the project had on how management and employees view one another. As mentioned above, management members of the project steering group were also interviewed. Management recognised the positive effects of the project on the employees’ professional and personal development and on their attitude and approach to work and to change. They were also willing to acknowledge that through the project they themselves had gained an appreciation of how staff, when given the opportunity, could competently solve their own problems and move things forward. As one manager put it: I have learned that a little encouragement goes a long way and people are capable of much more than given credit for in their normal everyday routine . . . people have

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talents and capabilities that we as, a department, are not tapping into.

And another: I sense amongst the exchange participants a greater willingness to get involved in change and to encourage others to do the same . . . There is a willingness to tackle new ideas as they now have confidence in themselves.

From the employees’ perspective management’s perception of the staff was also seen to have altered as a result of the exchanges: . . . I think they would have appreciated the work that staff did . . . but they never really asked what staff feelings were, what they thought of issues. Whether they were asking or not, they learnt. [The project] was a learning process for them as well so it has probably helped them to view staff more as people than staff.

Additionally, it was noted that management in the local offices had become ‘‘much more open’’ and had started having regular scheduled meetings with staff. These meetings provided staff with an opportunity to raise issues and to play a bigger part in the running of the offices. For their part, the employees were prepared to concede that management was showing signs of a desire to bring about positive change within the organization. One exchange participant commented that involvement had made her realise that: management in our organization are definitely trying to change the way everything is organized and run . . . I am hopeful. I think it is difficult for them to change.

The employees acknowledged that the active participation and presence of senior management at all stages of the project, and the informal nature of many of these exchanges, had helped to break down barriers and had gone some way toward changing their perceptions of managers. However, there was a certain tentativeness in the staff’s views, a ‘‘wait and see’’ attitude. One observed: . . . Maybe a year down the line we won’t be so enthusiastic unless we keep things moving.

Some staff also expressed concern that the changes had not been fully integrated into the normal day-to-day operations and that without the ‘‘special push’’ associated with the LEONARDO project the gains could be lost.

Discussion The original objective of the LEONARDO project was to help employees acquire the

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skills and competencies to cope effectively with the challenge of continuous change. The objective accords well with what Fredericks and Stewart (1996, p. 114) describe as the primary role of HRD practice: ‘‘to create capability within the organization to facilitate change and development in response to environmental transitions’’. The outcome of the project has been a release of potential in the targeted group so that they are not just coping with their environment but are moving towards taking the initiative and responsibility in relation to change. This is directly linked to a modification in their perception of their role and potential contribution to the organization as a result of participating in the project. The LEONARDO project has, through a range of participation mechanisms, facilitated the acquisition and development amongst the targeted group of a broad range of skills. As such, participation, in its different forms, is a powerful HRD tool that encapsulates all of the advantages of ‘‘learning by doing’’. The basic assumption behind experiential learning is that we learn best when we have a real issue to resolve. Furthermore, we are more involved in, and committed to the action – and the subsequent learning – if we have responsibility for what we are trying to resolve, change or manage (Revans, 1980). The exchange visits, which were a central element of the project, are considered to have made an essential contribution to the social competence, professional and personal development of the participants, permitting them to make more effective contributions to their organization. Similarly, many of the ingredients of the focus group process – gathering data, assembling it, asking relevant questions, checking reasoning and seeking feedback from others – are requirements for successful informal learning (Marsick and Volpe, 1999). At a broader level it was acknowledged that, as a result of participation in the project, staff generally were more receptive to the information that they were receiving from internal and external sources. As a result of this, there appeared to be an enhanced acceptance of the change process, coupled with demands for better communications, increased involvement in decision making, changed relationships with supervisors and improved access to training and development opportunities. According to Harrison (1997, p. 404), approaches to development that include the ingredients of proactivity, critical reflection and creativity are likely to lead to a ‘‘radical questioning process . . . shaking the cage of entrenched attitudes and mindsets’’. Experience of

participation appears to have generated a desire for more – the so-called ‘‘taste for power’’ hypothesis (Drago and Wooden, 1991). The pattern of the change involved in the LEONARDO project and the way in which it has been managed meet the conditions for change outlined by Beer et al. (1990). Staff commitment to change was mobilised through joint diagnosis of business problems in the form of the employee survey and subsequent discussion and planned action by employees and management. Through a process of dialogue a shared vision of how to organise and manage materialised. Strides have been made in terms of fostering a consensus for the new vision; the competence to enact it and the cohesion to move it along continues to be the focus of attention. The process used also bears close resemblance to French and Bell’s (1990) description of action research as a process entailing a combination of research and action. The outcomes of the project can be described at the level of the individual – in terms of social competence, personal and professional development – and at the level of the organization – in terms of achieving a change-related agenda. In the face of the reforms required in the public sector, one has to recognise that the changes achieved through the LEONARDO project are not of strategic proportions. They could be described as relatively low-key operational changes. However, in terms of steps forward, what might seem trivial for one organization can for another, that has been steeped in a bureaucratic, low-trust, high control tradition, be noteworthy. Implementing change that will ultimately transform an organization is a long-term process and Kotter (1996) emphasises the value of the ‘‘short-term win’’ both as a motivator and as a mechanism for tracking progress towards longer-term goals. They can, for example, help organizational transformation by undermining cynics and resisters and by turning neturals into supporters and reluctant supporters into active helpers. Much of the writing on the outcomes of direct participation shows a clear polarization between those, on the one hand, who see it as a panacea with benefits for all involved, and those, on the other hand, who see it as exploitative with benefits only accruing to management (Marchington and Wilkinson, 2000). In the latter view, rather than securing greater power, employees take on board increased accountability and responsibility. Marchington and Wilkinson (2000) argue that it is possible for participation to lead to more satisfying work due to greater discretion over work

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processes, whilst at the same time demands are more explicit and rigorous. It is clear from the evidence that the participants welcomed the opportunity to be involved and to be allowed to address problems. At the same time, they highlighted the extra effort and commitment that they had had to put into the project. While there is no evidence of significant shifts in the locus of power at this point, the opportunity to be involved and to be able to remove a number of irritants in their day-to-day work, while not earth shattering in the broad scheme of things, did appear to represent a significant improvement in their work lives. As Marchington and Wilkinson (2000, p. 355) point out ‘‘Even if workers suspect management motivations – increasing efficiency, rather than employee satisfaction – they can still be well disposed to direct participation. In short, attitudes may be broadly positive, but cautious and guarded, rather than credulous’’. Although positive in nature, the outcomes of the LEONARDO project also present the organization with a major challenge. How does it manage and respond to workers who are no longer just reacting to organizational change but who want to play a bigger role in decisions relating to change? A potential barrier to realising the full benefits of the participation initiatives is the capacity of middle management to respond to the workers in new and encouraging ways. While local managers demonstrated a willingness to embrace the project, the project also revealed significant gaps in their skills that had previously gone unnoticed. A shift from the controlling management style typically associated with large public administrations to the more facilitative and supportive style of management required in the current circumstances cannot be achieved overnight. The issue for the organization is how can it help management to cope with, facilitate and support the potential realised through the project. But first the parameters of the managers’ new people management role and the associated management style need to be defined. The project experience has helped to identify many of the ingredients. The project steering group’s task was not about managing a given change as such. It was essentially about creating an organizational form which by its very nature is more capable of managing change itself (Stewart, 1996). This necessitated mastering the art of preparing the agenda for participation, since the alternative is ‘‘wideopen, carte blanche anarchy’’ (Judson, 1991, p. 144). It meant designing the initiatives in ways that made it easier for others to contribute their knowledge and skills. It

meant posing questions and engaging in active listening. It meant resisting the temptation to be the ones to generate the ideas and instead to see the leadership role as one of developing and focusing motivation, energy and commitment and providing the necessary synergy. It also meant being alert to the HRD potential in participation practices and, where necessary, building in structure to capture learning. The management team benefited from its leadership of the LEONARDO project to the extent that it learnt about the business and about the nature of change from the junior employee’s perspective. The project has also been an effective system for learning about the change management process. Managers realise that they have failed to effectively tap into the impressive reservoir of potential that exists amongst lower level staff. The Tayloristic assumptions (Taylor, 1947) that encouraged the use of systems and policies to force individuals into a corporate mould are being questioned. In their place we are beginning to see the development of a management philosophy based on a more personalized approach that encourages a diversity of views and empowers employees to develop their own ideas. The other side of the coin is a perceptible change in the employee’s view of management and a willingness to attribute a more positive interpretation to their intentions and objectives. However, the reality is that routine activities tend to consume limited time and to take precedence over special projects. It is easier for managers to ‘‘whip up excitement over a vision at start-up than to keep the goal in people’s minds when they face the tedium of the work’’ (Kanter, 1982, p. 101). If the project is to maintain momentum, managers must sustain the enthusiasm of all by being persistent. They will need to ensure that participation becomes integral to the work process rather than ‘‘bolted on’’ and that it takes place on a continuous basis (Marchington and Wilkinson, 2000). Butcher and Atkinson (1999) point out that one of the reasons that ‘‘bottom up’’ change can fail is that it remains within a confined area of an organization with those outside able to see little correspondence between what has been tried and its relevance to the business as a whole. A challenge for management is to spread the learning from the project beyond the boundaries of the two participating offices and to an extent this is being achieved by integrating the lessons of the project into the Department’s HRM strategy. But what are the implications of this project for those charged with bringing about

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public sector reform? While there are obvious difficulties in generalizing from case study research, the findings do highlight the potential in ‘‘bottom up’’ change, based on direct participation by frontline employees. The project demonstrated the benefits of different levels and types of participation practices but it also highlighted the necessity to have a supportive environment. In other words, employee involvement is affected by, as much as affecting, other aspects of organization life (Marchington and Wilkinson, 2000). Encouraging participation must be a gradual process. The cultural perceptions built over years and which serve to regulate the ‘‘proper’’ relationships between managers and employees need to be taken into consideration. The issue of trust and motives for encouraging participation are important. Organizations have to accept that they comprise widely differing sets of actors with different views and aspirations. In other words, it is not possible to prescribe ‘‘appropriate’’ forms of direct participation. What is appropriate will depend on a host of factors in the organization’s environment, including the competence of management. Sustaining the momentum for such initiatives and ensuring a supportive environment are challenges that management has to address if the experience is not to end as ‘‘just another management fad’’. It would be foolish to underestimate the difficulties in implementing direct participation. The LEONARDO project also demonstrates the contribution that pilot projects can make to the management of change. The strategic management initiative exhibits the characteristics of an emergent strategy (Mintzberg, 1987). The strategies being developed by government departments in response to the SMI are emerging from the work of numerous project groups and from opportunities that become apparent along the way. The value of the LEONARDO project as an example of ‘‘good practice’’ has been recognised within the wider public sector (Humphreys et al., 1999) and the Department’s Strategy Statement 1998-2001 (Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs, 1998) stresses the need to ensure that the ‘‘bottom up’’ participative approach to continuous improvement, that was the hallmark of this project, should become an integral part of the way the department operates in the future.

Conclusion The case study presented above illustrates the effect that a seemingly minor ‘‘human

resource development’’ event can have upon the functioning of an organization and its predisposition towards changing the way in which it operates. The research has shown the relationship between participation and ‘‘bottom up’’ change. The experience of the organization documented within this article indicates that public sector organizations have much to gain from an approach to change management based on task alignment and participation. However, one should not underestimate the difficulties in implementing direct participation, or indeed, the requirements for training and realigning of roles and relationships if the initiative is to have more than a limited shelf-life. A key thrust of the LEONARDO project has been to foster involvement and participation, perhaps the most powerful levers that management can use to gain acceptance of change. If sustained and diffused, the longterm impact of the positive experiences of direct participation by employees should be a more adaptive organization. The organization referred to in this paper fully acknowledges that people are its most valuable resource. SWS has accepted that an approach to change based on task alignment, starting at the periphery and moving steadily toward the corporate core, is an effective way to achieve enduring organizational change. At its most fundamental, this approach relies on the direct participation of the workforce which, when successfully applied, can lead to a self-reinforcing cycle of commitment, coordination and competence (Beer et al., 1990). The department’s Statement of Strategy demonstrates the desire of senior management to use the project as a tool to facilitate further organizational change and to signify the emergence of a new management style within the wider organization. Moving towards implementation of these ideals will, of course, present management with a very considerable challenge.

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Leading urban institutions of higher education in the new millennium

Rick Rantz Department of Educational Leadership and Cultural Studies, College of Education, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, USA

Keywords Higher education, Leadership, Organizational effectiveness

Abstract This study gained insight into the impinging realities that college and university presidents will face in the new millennium, into the roles and strategies available for tackling these realities, and into the personal attributes that contribute to organizational effectiveness. Case study methods were employed, as the participants were all similarly bound by time and space. Qualitative analytic procedures were utilized to interpret data elicited in response to interview protocol, a process involving: organizing data; generating categories, themes, and patterns; testing emergent hypotheses against the data; and searching for alternative explanations of the data. Results substantiate findings that leaders transform their respective institutions into ethical and moral organizations by demonstrating their own moral and ethical fortitude.

Received: December 2001 Revised: June 2002 Accepted: July 2002

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Heroes and villains both emerge; courage as well as cowardice is shown; wisdom and folly are variously displayed; and nobody can really know precisely how many or how much of each are the result of time and place, on the one hand, or of strong, wise human character, on the other. That is the real puzzle (Kerr and Gade, 1987).

Introduction The puzzle that Kerr and Gade (1987) speak of above could easily describe the unfolding of a Shakespearean play (comedy, tragedy, or drama), a great suspense novel, or one of Hollywood’s epoch movies. Few individuals would read the words for the first time, authors obscured and title hidden, with the belief that it characterizes the higher education presidency. When the name Clark Kerr is attached, few in academia would fail to summon its association with this highly esteemed position. Kerr and Gade’s (1987) characterization of the college/university presidency is especially noteworthy considering that it holds time boundless. It describes America’s earliest college presidencies just as well as it describes those following establishment of the land grant colleges that sought to add practical value to the curriculum. It equally describes those presidencies during what has been referred to as the Golden Age in American higher education, that period following World War II when college campuses were rapidly being constructed and federal funds flowed forth, onward yet through those trying times of the 1960s when student revolts plagued college presidents, and then on through the 1990s as higher education was once again transformed by new technologies and consumer oriented customers. But, what about the higher education presidency as it moves forward The research register for this journal is available at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/researchregisters

into the new century? Will Kerr and Gade’s (1987) characterization remain constant or will a new lens need to be devised, one that is more fitting to a new age where advances in technology and international economic dependency confront and challenge the higher education presidency? The purpose of this study was to gain insight into the impinging realities that urban college and university presidents will face in the new millennium; to identify those roles and strategies available to presidents for tackling these realities; and to compile a set of personal attributes and characteristics of presidents that will contribute to organizational effectiveness and efficiency. The approach taken by this researcher was to view the presidency through the lens of each participant in this qualitative case study and then to organize the elicited pictures (responses) into categorical themes from which dominant themes could then be discerned.

Literature review Colonial college presidents, as noted by Mayhew and Glenn (1975), derived much of their power from the situation at hand. Protestant lay boards empowered the college president, usually a minister, with the responsibility of managing the church’s business, often autonomously or in isolation. According to Mayhew and Glenn (1975, p. 300), colonial presidents ‘‘were expected to build the college plant, recruit faculty and students, solicit funds and to do whatever was necessary to insure the survival of the new institution’’. Presidents served as senior professor, registrar, disciplinarian, or in whatever capacity or position that was necessary to make sure that the institution survived. In contrast to modern universities, and as noted by Rudolph (1990), the ‘‘old college’’ was one where nothing happened The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/0143-7739.htm

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and it was the president’s attention to mundane matters that assured that nothing did happen. By contrast, presidents in the years to follow would be characterized by Rudolph as men who knew what they wanted and were prepared to try just about anything to ensure that they were able to achieve their objectives.

Changing realities Reality for college presidents has changed dramatically over the years as the USA has developed from its colonial roots into the dynamic nation that it is today. Long gone are the perceived images of harmonious exchange and co-existence between the nation’s colleges and universities and their external communities. These images have been torn down and replaced by one more representative of ‘‘the university under siege’’, a place where the ‘‘open pursuit of knowledge’’ is constantly under assault and rarely without challenge (Weissberg, 2000). Pressure brought on by corporations, politicians, and other critics is constantly challenging the academy to become more responsive and this has led to stress and an uncertain identity (Jarvis, 2001). The rapid pace of globalization and demands to fuel ‘‘the knowledge industry’’ are largely responsible for this advent according to Weber (1999). Moreover, Parsons (2000) asserts that these pressures are affecting the foundational beliefs and value systems of American higher education in a manner that is now evident within the social and instructional structures of many institutions. As reality has changed over the years for presidents, so have the various roles presidents have had to assume in keeping pace and managing these realities. In fact, the verb ‘‘to manage’’ relative to the college presidency has become more of an oxymoron than a set of concise and easily articulated skills that can be used or adapted to bring about successful outcomes. Leadership is a term perhaps more fitting because as a concept it is frequently associated with bringing ambiguity into some kind of contained space or manageable order (Cohen and March, 1974). The assertion that leadership is synonymous with ‘‘herding cats’’ comes to mind. At a time of shifting paradigms and rapid change, college presidents are increasingly expected to bring vastly complex dynamics that are often blurred between purpose and reality into a cohesive package that is acceptable to all. This can make the job of the presidency seem either daunting or next to impossible for all but those who occupy the position (Pattenaude, 2000).

Evolving roles and strategies After examining the ambiguity associated with leadership, Pfeffer (1991) concluded that a set of myths serves to reinforce the social construction of meaning relative to the role that a leader occupies. These myths make mobility apparent to potential leaders and they also further social consequences relative to leadership performance. All of these contribute to the belief that individual control is effective. If strategic and lasting objectives are to be obtained, Gardner (1988) contends that leaders must be able to gather all of the illusionary pieces of their organizations and to competently transform these into clear and focused pictures of the future. This requires more that just providing for short-term solutions that can easily be targeted by single-interest groups. A process of interaction is required, one that cannot be analyzed or discussed without reference to those involved in the process (Birnbaum, 1992). College and university presidents in the new millennium face the stiff challenges of maintaining open access, new or alternative sources of funding, and their active involvement in the political and civic arenas that surround their institutions (Gaskin, 1997). The presidency has entered into a new stage in its history, explains Kerr (1998), one in which it will be necessary for leadership to define and implement new priorities for continued national development. In doing this it will be necessary for presidents to move the academy toward a ‘‘universe of knowledge’’ and away from ideological splits of the past. Presidents will be expected to transform their campuses away from ‘‘dropin centers’’ and toward places of real community interaction and collaboration. Additionally, Kerr contends that presidents will be required to direct more attention to the effective procurement and use of resources. Vaughan and Weisman (1997) suggest that presidents would also be wise to engage in a process of evaluating data and to ask questions related to such if they are to grasp an understanding of their roles and arrive at well-informed decisions, thereby averting many problems before they have had a chance to surface. Several other roles are bound to occupy the higher education presidency in the new millennium. Some of these will result from technological development and others will evolve from the American concern for upward mobility and equal opportunity. Presidents will need to become balancers of consumerism, careful not to tilt the scale in a direction that favors consumer demands at the expense of core institutional values,

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especially those directed toward student learning (Rhodes, 2001). Pattenaude (2000) points to several reasons why this will be an especially difficult task. First, the private sector, especially Internet-based ones, stand eager and willing to address consumer desires for greater learning convenience and responsiveness. Second, the need to accommodate rapid technological advancement will place demands on presidents to find innovative ways of bringing the costs associated with these in line with available financial resources. Third, escalating tuition and fees will make it necessary for presidents to find alternative ways of financing access and opportunity if lower socially stratified consumers are not to be priced out of the market. Finally, presidents will be called upon to display greater confidence to those within and outside of higher education by letting them know that a vision and direction are in place and being nurtured. At the end of the twentieth century higher education was already being challenged to engage the greater populace in a large-scale and productive manner, especially those individuals disenfranchised from the democratic process (Boyte and Kari, 2000). Therefore, college and university presidents in the new millennium may feel obligated to arrive at new and innovative ways of connecting to those on the fringes of society who are disaffected, powerless, or are members of the ‘‘popular culture’’, groups most likely to reject societal convention and conformity and less likely to participate in mainstream democracy. This will be a somewhat difficult endeavor because as Boyte and Kari summarize, colleges and universities will be required to broaden their understanding of the aims and processes associated with knowledge creation, to allocate greater attention to the teaching and learning aspects of the academy, and to promote civic and community dimensions within the professional identities of employees. Presidents may also feel obliged to adopt or renew their commitments to the already successful service-learning programs that purportedly have led to positive cognitive and affective outcomes among students (Wellman, 2000, p. 333). Depending on how hard the political winds of the new millennium blow to the right, institutional accountability and effectiveness are likely either to remain stationary (Parsons, 2000) or to take on greater importance to the higher education presidency (Miller, 1999). Since the institutional accountability and effectiveness movements are largely of external making,

they point to the significance of frequent presidential scans, formal and informal scans that not only assess elements within campus boundaries, but scans that also extend to examine external environments (Mortimer and Edwards, 1990). When presidents discover that they are off course, they will undoubtedly want to make adjustments. It is likely that most presidents are capable of maintaining high standards, open student access, and the like. However, Mortimer and Edwards (1990) contend that the real problem arises in being able to identify performance standards that adequately and truly link human potential to a set of predetermined standards, or in being able to define quality in a manner that reflects ‘‘the diversity of the human experience and the diversity of college and university programs’’ (Mortimer and Edwards, 1990, p. 78).

Emerging characteristics and personal attributes With all of the emphasis currently being directed toward institutional accountability and effectiveness, more attention may be required that focuses on individual accountability and effectiveness relative to higher education leadership. In light of the current series of corporate scandals plaguing the US financial markets, personal and professional ethics within all organizations are certain to take on new meaning. Early management literature, notably that of Follet (1920), chronicled a ‘‘system of ethics’’ that emerged in American society as a unified process where the concept of ‘‘right’’ exists within a deeper purpose toward society, and held together by the loyalty to that purpose. Follet offered a simple framework to illustrate this ethical system, noting that those in charge should not seek to follow right, but to create it; that conscience at a private level does not exist, and that duty should not be directed toward ‘‘others’’ but to the whole. More recent scholars have sought to establish important links between leadership and personal attributes in shaping the moral unity of organizations and society (Gardner, 1993), or to expound upon a set of actions and personal qualities and characteristics that can heighten a leader’s perceived integrity (Bennis, 1989), or to promote leadership as the ultimate moral act involving the interpretation of how an institution should act (Birnbaum, 1992). Beyond the populist literature just reviewed, a few US and overseas scholars have recently made some admirable empirical attempts to refocus attention on the personal attributes and characteristics

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required of leaders. Among these is Aronson (2001), who has concluded that values lie at the root of moral conduct and as such serve to bring favorable attention to both the leader and external and internal constituents, the coupling of which contributes to organizational effectiveness and efficiency. As clarified by Dolan and Garcia (2002, p. 116), values ‘‘encompass complex ideas about the reality desired by people’’ and allow individuals to perceive their environments in a manner that permits them to conceptualize visions and ideas of the future. Mendonca (2001) presents a similar view of morality, one in which the moral environment of an organization is represented by the ‘‘natural overflow’’ that results from the ethical leader’s ‘‘altruistic motive, empowering influence strategies, and moral character formation’’ (Mendonca, 2001, p. 275). Congruent to this mix is Dickson et al.’s (2001) argument that an effective climate for ethics will vary among different organizations and that it is only after an ethical climate is placed into action by leaders that followers are able to gain the relevance of such in their daily lives. Although somewhat prevalent in the general leadership literature, contemporary inquiry that focuses on the personal attributes required of higher education presidents is rather obscure.

Design of the study Each of the five participants in this case study held the position of college or university president at public sector institutions of higher education at the time this study was conducted. Holistically, these participants represented the gamut of institutional typologies located in a large, mid-southern, US, urban environment, i.e. community colleges, four-year, and graduate research institutions. Participants consisted of four white males and one Hispanic female. One of the male participants was a retired president serving as interim president. The average length of tenure as president among participants was 5.5 years. Case study methods were employed for data collection as the urban college and university presidents that made up the participant pool were all similarly bound by time and space, or more specifically by the new millennium and urban institutions of higher education. This bounded system allowed for commonalities and differences to be compared and contrasted among participant responses, as Creswell (1998, p. 61) suggested that it might, and further

presented an excellent opportunity to gather ‘‘multiple sources of information rich in context’’. Yin (1994, p. 8) contends that case methods are preferential ‘‘when the relevant behaviors cannot be manipulated’’. Furthermore, Merriam (1998, p. 19) suggests that the ‘‘insights gleaned from case studies can directly influence policy, practice, and future research’’. Qualitative methods were selected because they make use of the natural language accounts of participants who are likely to describe their actions and the actions of others within the context of their own social systems (Morrow, 1994). Interview protocol was devised to elicit data. Although inescapably constrained by face-to-face interaction, interviews, as predicted by Dingwall (1997), did present a platform from which informants were able to demonstrate their competence. Interviews averaged one hour in length and were held over a twomonth period due to the calendar constraints of participants. Calendar constraints also prevented follow-up face-to-face interviews, but access via telephone and e-mail was made available by all of the participants for the purposes of clarification and authenticity. While it was the initial intention of this researcher to include more women and minorities as participants in the study, the geographical pool of prospective participants simply did allow for this if diverse institutional typologies were to be maintained. Interviews were held in the work places where participants likely felt comfortable and relaxed and at a time most convenient for participants. In fact, one participant scheduled her interview on a Saturday morning so as to avoid interruptions and, in her words, ‘‘to provide optimal access’’ to what she had to contribute. The analytic constructs used to arrive at conclusions were all supported by theory (see analysis) and an attempt was made through extrapolation to demonstrate that research findings are relative beyond just the material at hand (Alsauutari, 1995). Although a structured interview protocol was devised as a mechanism for eliciting individual accounts and for assuring consistency among all of the interviews, depth probes were also utilized as suggested by Glensne (1999, p. 87) to ascertain ‘‘more explanation, clarification, description, and evaluation’’. These probes allowed the interviewer to scratch beneath surface responses and to delve even further into propositions and latent responses to arrive at both depth and breadth. Interviews were recorded and transcribed for accuracy to assure the clarity of meaning.

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Data analysis An interpretive approach to data analysis was adopted because it allowed for the meaning of events to be distinguished and elicited an understanding of how people adapt, and make sense of what is going on in their environments (Rubin and Rubin, 1995). The interpretive approach recognizes that everything is not important, nor can it be measured with exact precision. To strengthen the interpretive approach, five modes of qualitative analytic procedures were utilized as recommended by Marshall and Rossman (1989): 1 organizing data; 2 generating categories, themes, and patterns; 3 testing the emergent hypotheses against the data; 4 searching for alternative explanations of the data; and 5 writing the report. .

Content was coded and analyzed with the assistance of a software application designed specifically to help manage and analyze large quantities of data. Three themes emerged from this process that seemed to add credence to what was already known from the literature, but contributed little that would adequately advance or bring understanding into any new or heightened realm. Therefore, these themes served the initial research in a confirmatory capacity, but not in an informative or explanatory one. In an effort to uncover data that could be used to bring about more synthesis, and to identify those themes, causal sequences, propositions and patterns that had not already been brought to light through electronic means, a hand coding system was devised and employed to analyze the data. Although somewhat more cumbersome, this latter process proved very beneficial in that it not only allowed for greater collocation, but also enabled surface themes to emerge that could be theoretically transgressed and grounded to the original research questions. The processes mentioned above were further strengthened through a meaning fields analysis that allowed for a full range of meaningful representations to be constructed. Carspecken (1996) contends that meaning fields should not be viewed as just an analytic concept, but should be considered as a substantive concept as well. According to Carspecken (1996), ‘‘meanings are always experienced within a field of other possibilities.’’ As explained by Gillham (2000), various people often make expressions of the same thing in a variety of ways, and it

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is the role of the researcher to elicit the latent meaning that sometimes is not readily recognizable within the surface content. This process provides researchers with both high and low inference data for analysis.

Results Realities unveiled Participants of this study holistically compartmentalized their perceptions about the impinging realities facing presidents in the new millennium into a reality frame comprising two spilt images. One image consisted of an academy under intense pressure from external forces to conform to a host of demands waged at it by rapidly changing world dynamics. The general consensus was that external forces, especially those of a business and corporate nature, have provided higher education and thus the presidency, with an ultimatum: either form alliances or face the grim consequences. The following statements made by participants are but a few examples illustrating this: Whatever it is that presidents are doing in their respective colleges, they must do whatever is needed to align their efforts with what the business community is requiring. There is no way to dance around that. A president that focuses internally simply is not going to connect and the institution will not connect to what is expected of them by those outside the academy. People who sit in these chairs [the president’s] will be required to focus externally and relate their institutions more to the realities of what is happening in the outside world, otherwise they will soon be considered irrelevant.

Within this same image, not only were external entities perceived by participants as being extremely demanding, they were further characterized as being highly critical, time conscious, results driven and outcomes oriented, as these representative comments convey: We are in a global marketplace and as presidents, CEOs, chancellors, we have a tremendous amount of external critics that report to us daily what our shortcomings are as we go about doing our business of higher education. Presidents must be able to produce results in a quick manner for our businesses, companies, and corporations that are located across the country and the world. The pressure is on. Organizational management is being challenged. We have to be results driven. We as presidents have to

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very quickly choose processes and close loops. Presidents have to prove that if there is a beginning, there is also an end to a project. They have to show evidence that something happened; that there is an outcome.

Juxtaposed within the above image were several disgruntled community activists and other external audiences, all espousing their own agendas and expectations of the higher education presidency. A certain emotional sense was brought to the image as participants explained here: There are many external audiences, particularly for a public university, and they all are not always happy or kind, i.e. the lay board (board of regents and trustees), the legislature, the news media, the alumni, especially the alumni that are oriented toward intercollegiate athletics. Presidents must recognize the fact that politically community activists are the heart of our communities and they are experiencing a great deal of growing pains. By their very nature these activists tend to be very emotional/professional. So, there is a dynamic that exists between the personal and the professional that causes these community leaders to express themselves in ways that are far different from the professional, expected type of protocol that presidents have traditionally confronted.

A paradoxical image also existed within the reality frame, one constituted of internal stakeholders that were perceived by participants as being overwhelmingly conservative and willing to stand their ground against change being demanded by external entities. Revealed by participants in remarks similar to these are the resulting tensions:

they are very conservative organizations. Although individual professors often have left wing political views, as a structure they are enormously conservative.

On the horizon that crosses both images within the reality frame stood an aging staff that entered the academy in the late 1960s and early 1970s when higher education was rapidly being expanded across the nation. Participants predicted that the holes left across the fabric of institutions as a result of mass retirement would create additional stress upon the academy as it seeks to locate enough qualified applicants to fill in the gaps left by these departing professionals. Impinging stress of this nature was derived from statements similar to this one brought forth by a four-year university participant: People are getting ready to retire in the next five years. So, that means that executive leadership is going to be hard pressed to find replacements. It is going to be extremely difficult to locate people who are academically or technically prepared and competent, and that know how to relate their positions to this new age. Individuals right out of college with their newly minted master’s degrees that have no other kinds of experience or training simply will not do.

Finally, massed at the center of this image within the reality frame was a new higher education clientele that participants described as ‘‘out shopping for credits.’’ Participants generally characterized this clientele as being ‘‘consumer-oriented.’’ Participants perceived that this new breed of clientele jeopardizes the very existence of public higher education, as statements of the following nature collectively communicate:

Universities are organizations that are much more effective at preventing change than bringing it about. At least change in terms of results.

Students now view higher education as commodity. We now have a consumeroriented culture that shops for credits and they will purchase the best deal available to them. The notion of learning for its own sake has no immediate relevancy.

You have to realize that on a campus like ours [a four year institution] that a great deal of conservatism exists. People who want to keep things as they are fall along a continuum. At the right hand of the continuum are the students who want less change than anybody, then faculty, and then the board.

What scares me to death as a college president, really frightens me, is the fact that we are getting more and more propriety schools. The competition is on and this whole school business can very easily be taken away from the public sector and given to the private sector.

We are dealing with [internal] constituencies that two out of three would rather have no change at all. Life is good. Life is very good for these students here. We educationally subsidize the hell out of them. Life is good for our faculty. They are paid very, very well and benefits are very, very good, and it is a very invigorating experience. Who would want to change that? You have to realize that universities are very consequential medieval organizations and

Roles and strategies defined Participants aggregated their perceptions relative to the roles that presidents would be expected to play and the strategies available to them in the new millennium into an operational frame. Participants predicted that the presidents’ leading roles would be to work with diversity and to position the academy in such a manner as to allow it to meet the challenges brought forth by external

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forces. Participants collectively felt that both of these roles would require presidents to adopt strategies that cause internal stakeholders to embrace change as a necessary and beneficial aspect of the organization. All participants when attempting to describe the operational frame made reference to the changing demographics of the USA and painted this as a real challenge that would confront the higher education presidency in the new millennium. Illustrating concerns of this nature is the following comment made by one of the community college participants: We were predominately an Anglo institution, perhaps as much as 80 to 85 percent. Well today, just ten years later only about 48 percent of our students are Anglo. The other 52 percent are spread between AfricanAmerican, Hispanic, and increasingly Asian American students. When you walk across campus, you hear as many as six to eight different languages. There is no doubt that the diverse nature of our student body is significantly impacting our curriculum, instructional methodologies, and the kinds of programs that we are reaching out with.

Also noted within the context of demographic change were increasing numbers of international students (representing as many as 110 different nations in the research university), and a state and national student input base that participants perceived to be under prepared. Several participants, although admitting to the many pressures exerted upon the academy by demographic change, perceived the situation as a positive advent. Participants predicted that presidents leading in the new millennium would want to embrace diversity as a tool for strengthening their respective organizations, noting that this would require them to assume various human resource kinds of roles, including the role of a balancer, a communicator, a diplomat, and conflict manager, as evidenced below: The president will need to be someone who can achieve balance, someone who has in mind the interest of constituents, whose goals and objectives are not in conflict with each other, someone who tries to build coalitions for policy changes that will make it possible to actually achieve change. Presidents must possess excellent communication skills in the new century, written as well as oral communication skills. They must be able to articulate the mission of the institution both internally and externally. And through those communication skills lead the institution to make those changes in its behavior that are necessary.

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It is all in the art of the communication I think. One of the key points here is the way that the college/university president communicates the reason for change. I would hope that the president would have discussed the necessity for change with the team in multiple ways before the change is attacked. Presidential ego in the new millennium will need to be tempered with an ability to work mutually with other people, cooperatively with other people in the enterprise and in the community to help move the institution forward. It’s critical for the survival of the university/ college that presidents bring with them the ability to deal with all types of people. It is having the touch, the common touch, having the ability to be humble, to be able touch all people, and to want to work with him or her. This is critical in today’s climate. One thing that college and university presidents have to realize is that they need to keep the doors open for all types of people. And even though there may be some established protocol, or paid staff about how presidents behave within their own institutions, there also is a realistic style that college and university presidents must enlist if they are to work directly hand in hand with people of all backgrounds.

Although participants perceived the leadership strategies available to presidents as multidimensional in nature, they clustered these around focusing institutions outwardly, taking action in their local communities, and involving stakeholders in democratic processes as noted below: Presidents have to recognize very quickly and they have to work their teams by getting out and pressing the flesh in their communities and getting to know people, because the fact is, projects by their very nature require that different experts come to the table for decision making. Presidents need to be players in their communities, always trying to develop a kind of home prestige for their respective institution. There is more work than we have people and money to help us in these universities, so it behooves presidents to make allies with community leaders and to marshal those troops into helping to define the fabric of what you want for your college in terms of a strategic plan, goals, objectives, etc. It’s their home. Find a way to make them feel at home with you.

Personal attributes and characteristics unraveled Participants categorized their general perceptions of the kinds of personal attributes and characteristics that would best contribute to organizational effectiveness

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and efficiency into a psychological frame comprising presidential values and ethics. Foremost among these perceptions was the astute belief that presidents must value higher education as an enterprise. Typical were responses resembling these below: As president of a university, you have to believe in the concept of a university. What it is, the role it plays in society. You have to like people. You have to like working with people. Presidents have to value the academic enterprise. They have to value the role of research, of scholarly inquiry, and the relationship scholarly inquiry plays in teaching the learning process. I think that presidents have to value diversity. Especially in a public university you have to understand that the public has become much more diverse ethnically, economically. And, you have to try to motivate the various components of the university to respond to them – that’s imperative. Presidents should recognize that higher education transforms people, that it has the power to reach people in all their lives, and presidents should be convinced that higher education is something that should be done and that it is worthwhile. One of the president’s core beliefs should be that they are at the disposition of the institution that they serve. And, they should want to be faithful to it, and bring it forward in fidelity to meet new situations. That it is not theirs.

In parity with valuing higher education as an enterprise, and key within the psychological frame denoted by participants, was the notion that presidents operating in the new millennium must value individual worth and dignity. This sentiment resided throughout the data in statements typical of the following: It’s important that presidents value or recognize the importance of human capital, because that’s what we are really all about at any level of higher education, whether it is community colleges, or graduate programs. It’s trying to add value to the individual so that he or she can become a more productive member of society. There is really no other reason for our programs to exist. We [presidents] cannot ride roughshod over the rights of individuals, whether they are students or faculty, or consumers, members of the public, or whatever. Presidents have to make sure that they adhere to due process both internally and externally. They have to be fair-minded and deal with people in a fair-minded way. And, that’s tough in an increasingly complex society.

Within the psychological frame pointed to by participants, presidents were seen bringing

about organizational effectiveness and efficiency only after they had demonstrated to constituents high levels of personal integrity through action, mainly action that engenders trust through honest and truthful communication. The following interview excerpts illustrate this finding: You [the president] must be perceived as having a lot of integrity and you must be perceived as having some backbone, because there are a lot of times when decisions come up and you come under intense pressure to waiver from what you believe in. Presidents must be believable. The thing that undoes presidencies all over the country is a perceived lack of integrity. You can be forgiven for many things, but being evasive, or lying to the faculty or the board is unforgivable. And, they will get you every time. If you are not a habitual teller of truths you are really going to be unhappy at one of these jobs [as president]. Because short term, telling the truth is going to hurt, but long term, not telling is absolutely fatal. People just don’t understand lies. People will forgive mistakes, even faculty. They will forgive lapses, but they won’t forget your attempts to fool them.

Along with integrity, participants uniformly predicted that presidents would need to possess high levels of ethical behavior. However, the general perception among participants was that mere possession of ethics in the new millennium would not be enough. Participants felt that successful presidents would need to model ethical behavior and to serve as ‘‘gatekeepers’’ of society’s own values. The following are common responses of this nature: I think leaders today had better be attuned to the fact that they need to be models and that they need to model sound ethical and legal behavior. People hold us to high standards and so the leader, the president, the CEO, must exhibit a set of sound values and beliefs. Leaders have to be very mindful of how they behave 24 hours a day because they are teletyping a message to all of their constituents. People get very concerned about following a leader when they are confused about their behavior. So, presidents have to minimize confusion by acting in an ethical manner. People are keeping report cards and they are very mindful of how leaders act. Universities are slow to change and in order to really make a difference, presidents have to build confidence, respect, trust, and again have to put together coalitions that will enable positive steps to be taken in the direction that the president wants to go. People out in society expect leaders of public education to exhibit ethical behavior. In a sense we are gatekeepers of societal values –

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kind of like every profession is to some extent a gatekeeper. I think of medical doctors, jurists, not necessarily lawyers, but certainly judges.

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Interpretations Highlighted as a truism by Pattenaude (2000, p. 164) and reiterated by participants of this study, higher education will certainly face ‘‘extraordinary and unparalleled challenges in the twenty-first century’’. To predict that the future will be more difficult or trying for college and university presidents than in previous years would be to do so without recognizing that each period in the history of higher education has come and gone with its own set of immense problems and concerns for the presidency. However, and as Pattenaude asserts, higher education is entering a new phase in its history with its own set of demands and challenges for the presidency. Participants within this study constructed a reality frame in which they predicted that presidents in the new millennium would be forced into forging new alliances with external entities. These entities were characterized by participants as highly critical, results driven, and outcomes oriented. Many of these external entities, especially community activists, were classified by participants as being extremely disgruntled individuals that carry with them their own agendas and expectations of the higher education presidency. Existing on the other side of this equation were internal stakeholders, a highly conservative and resilient structure intent upon holding constant against change. Adding stress to the presidency within the reality frame was the fact that many of higher education’s most competent professionals would soon retire. Compounding the future even more for presidents was a new consumer-oriented clientele that places public higher education in direct competition with private sector higher education. In accounting for all of the above, participants predicted that the higher education presidency in the new millennium would be one forged by external constituents, held steady by internal stakeholders, challenged by community activists, stressed in its efforts to locate a new generation of qualified and dedicated staff, and competed against by the private sector. After assessing the roles that presidents would need to assume and the strategies they would need to employ to execute those roles, participants classified their predictions relative to these into an operational frame.

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Changing national and institutional demographics forged most of the participants’ perceptions; a reality that likely caused them to define the main roles of the presidency as ones that bring diversity and the challenges waged at the academy by external constituents into some kind of manageable order. Many participants viewed diversity as a source of strength that institutions could draw upon. Participants recommended that presidents adopt strategies that would cause their respective institutions to focus outwardly, that would be community focused, and that would provide stakeholders with a voice. The perceptions conveyed by participants within the operational frame are consistent with the proposition brought forth by both Gini (1997) and Crosby (1999): Through their conduct and policy, leaders, within the context of any job, must try to make their fellow constituents aware that they are all stakeholders in a conjoint activity that cannot succeed without their involvement and commitment (Gini, 1997, p. 329). Leaders should identify the commonalities that draw potential collaborators together and those personal differences that can foster creativity and goal accomplishment if honored rather than disregarded. In addition, they should identify commonalities among likely collaborators and opponents, even when their differences seem most salient. The commonalities can be the bridge that facilitates communication between the two camps (Crosby, 1999, p. 35).

Judge (1999, pp. 76-7) contends that, ‘‘if a central activity of leaders is to clarify and instill shared organizational values, executives need to be clear about their own personal values and live according to them’’. Consistent with Pearman’s (1998) assertions that leadership exists as a psychological process, participants of this study grouped their perceptions related to the personal attributes and characteristics required of the higher education presidency into a psychological frame. Considering that globalization has caused the academy, in its search for new roles and opportunities, to face new dilemmas and paradoxes of a moral nature (Jarvis, 2001), it is not surprising that participants zeroed in on values and ethics as being essential ingredients for all presidents. Participants predicted that presidents leading in the new millennium would be those who place high personal value on the academy and on the worth and dignity of all stakeholders, internal and external ones. Within the psychological frame, participants predicted that presidents would have to exert tremendous energies in the

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direction of exhibiting high levels of integrity. Participants perceived that this integrity would have to be earned through action. Action was seen being engendered through trust that materializes as a result of ‘‘honest and truthful communication’’. This finding seems consistent with Trevin˜o et al.’s (2000, pp. 141-2) summary of ethical leadership found below: Being an ethical leader requires developing a reputation for ethical leadership. Developing a reputation for ethical leadership depends upon how others perceive the leader on two dimensions: as a person and a moral manger. Being a moral person encompasses who you are, what you do, and what you decide as well as making sure that others know about this dimension of you as a person. Being a moral manager involves being a role model for ethical conduct, communicating regularly about ethics and values, and using the reward system to hold everyone to the values and standards. Ethical leadership pays dividends in employee pride, commitment, and loyalty – all particularly important in a full employment economy in which good companies strive to find and keep the best people.

Conclusion In summary, presidents hoping to be successful leaders in the new millennium must do all they can to prevent their visions from becoming obstructed by the advents of the new millennium. Presidents must be strong in their efforts to unify all constituents around a general purpose or mission. To this end, presidents may have to adopt new lenses for viewing both internal and external constituencies. They must be willing to model those lenses that best allow them to demonstrate their own personal value systems and that enable them to become more attuned to their own ethical strengths. Presidents must be willing to wear multiple lenses if necessary, to scan their environments in an effort to keep pace with the kaleidoscope of complexities that will certainly accompany the new millennium. Furthermore, new lenses may be required if leaders are to find their way in the new millennium, lenses that will enable them to chart an institutional direction and path for bringing new followers on board and for keeping them and existing ones content.

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Leadership and innovation in the public sector

Sandford Borins University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada

Keywords Innovation, Leadership, Bottom up decision making, Crisis

Abstract This article considers the nature and role of leadership in three ideal types of public management innovation: politically-led responses to crises, organizational turnarounds engineered by newlyappointed agency heads, and bottom-up innovations initiated by front-line public servants and middle managers. Quantitative results from public sector innovation awards indicate that bottom-up innovation occurs much more frequently than conventional wisdom would indicate. Effective political leadership in a crisis requires decision making that employs a wide search for information, broad consultation, and skeptical examination of a wide range of options. Successful leadership of a turnaround requires an agency head to regain political confidence, reach out to stakeholders and clients, and to convince dispirited staff that change is possible and that their efforts to do better will be supported. Political leaders and agency heads can create a supportive climate for bottom-up innovation by consulting staff, instituting formal awards and informal recognition for innovators, promoting innovators, protecting innovators from control-oriented central agencies, and publicly championing bottom-up innovations that have proven

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Innovation has become a topic of great interest to managers in both the public and private sectors[1]. In the private sector, the rapid development of technology has provided opportunities for firms to launch new products, transform their production processes, and do business in new ways. The Schumpeterian process of creative destruction has become particularly intense, and in many industries, the choice faced by managers is innovate or die. The conventional wisdom regarding the public sector is that public sector innovation is a virtual oxymoron. A number of explanations have been put forward as to why this would be the case. Public choice theory argues that public sector agencies are usually monopolies, with no competitive pressure to innovate. Political scientists have observed that the media’s and opposition parties’ interest in exposing public sector failures (management in a fishbowl) forms a powerful impediment to innovation. Furthermore, stringent central agency constraints – to minimize corruption and ensure due process – raise barriers to innovation. Organizational sociologists have noted that public sector organizations are usually large bureaucracies structured to perform their core tasks with stability and consistency, and resist change or disruption of these tasks (Wilson, 1989, pp. 218-26). In recent years this conventional wisdom has been questioned. The public sector has faced challenges – such as driving down costs to reduce the debt burden – and opportunities – such as applying information technology – that have forced it to innovate. Nongovernmental organizations in a number of countries have attempted to catalyze public sector innovation by establishing public

management innovation awards. These awards shared two key objectives: countering public criticism or hostility to the public service, in part because it is perceived as not being innovative, and encouraging the development and dissemination of innovations and best practices within the public sector. Public management innovation has become a subject of considerable academic interest. One line of research involves detailed, and sometimes comparative, case studies. In some instances, the innovations were originally identified because they were among the winners of innovation awards. Case studies have dealt with innovations in particular policy areas, such as community policing (Sparrow, 1994), educational choice (Roberts and King, 1996), or civic environmentalism (John, 1994). Other case studies of innovation have dealt with overarching themes such as alternative service delivery (Goldsmith, 2001), the application of information technology (Fountain, 2001), and organizational transformation (Barzelay, 1992; Osborne and Plastrik, 2000). Another approach has involved using large samples of innovations identified by innovation awards to generate and test hypotheses about the process of innovation (Borins, 1998, 2001). The objective of this paper is to use the results of both case studies and quantitative analysis to explore the relationship between leadership and innovation in the public sector. That relationship can be probed by asking a number of questions. Who leads innovations? Do innovations create leadership capacity for the public sector? How do leaders exercising formal authority react to innovations? What climate do they create for potential innovators? This paper starts with a fundamental distinction between bottom-up and top-down

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Introduction

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innovations, and then examines the role that leadership plays in each.

Three ideal types of public sector innovation While students of business have found that strategic decisions regarding the adoption of innovations are often taken by CEOs and boards of directors, they have also discovered that many innovations emerge from the bottom up (Kanter, 1988, 2001). In technologybased firms in particular, many innovations result from scientists or other staff with technical expertise following their own research interests to develop new products or processes. Many firms have instituted the practice of giving their researchers one day per week, plus commensurate resources, to work on their own projects. Peters and Waterman (1982) took the argument further, pointing to innovations undertaken by mavericks working at ‘‘skunkworks’’ far from central offices, often operating without a clear mandate from above and using bootlegged resources. Hamel (2000) presented case studies showing that the inspiration for IBM’s involvement with the Internet came from two middle managers, one a programmer and the other a marketer, that the idea for the development of Sony’s PlayStation video game console came from a mid-level researcher, and that the impetus for Shell to become involved in the production of renewable energy came from a mid-level planner. Hesselbein et al. (2001), in a recent collection of articles, showed that there is a consensus among private sector researchers and practitioners about the importance of such bottom-up innovations and provide suggestions for how organizations can support them. In contrast, the conventional wisdom in the public sector is that whatever innovation occurs comes almost exclusively from the top (Wilson, 1989, pp. 227-32). In both parliamentary and presidential democracies, voters elect politicians to enact policies. While the USA makes a greater proportion of senior executive appointments on a political basis, in many parliamentary democracies the most senior appointments in the public service are made by the politicians. This would seem to place the responsibility – and motivation – for innovation outside the public service itself. (The rationale for the system, of course, is to make the bureaucracy indirectly responsive to the public through the politicians they elect.) Similarly, some public management academics have argued that innovation from within the public

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service could conflict with traditional values such as due process and accountability (Gawthrop, 1999; Goodsell, 1993; Terry, 1998). Furthermore, stability-seeking public sector organizations having strong central controls and operating in hostile environments can be expected to have personnel systems that do not reward career public servants for successful innovation but that punish them for unsuccessful attempts. These asymmetric incentives may well lead to adverse selection, namely the avoidance by innovative individuals of public service. That is the received wisdom. The results of extensive research using applications to several innovation awards tell a different story (Borins, 2001, pp. 27-9)[2]. In the USA, approximately 50 percent of the innovations originate from middle managers or front-line staff, 25 percent from agency heads, 21 percent from politicians, 13 percent from interest groups, and 10 percent from individuals outside government. In the sample from the economically advanced countries of the Commonwealth (Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, UK), the proportion from middle managers or frontline staff (82 percent) and agency heads (39 percent) was higher, while that of politicians (11 percent), interest groups (2 percent), and individuals outside government (5 percent) was lower. For the developing countries in the sample (Bangladesh, Ghana, India, Jamaica, Malaysia, Seychelles, South Africa, Zimbabwe), the results are also similar. Since some respondents gave multiple answers, these numbers sum to more than 100 percent (see Table I). In both Commonwealth samples and the 1995-1998 US data, middle managers were separated from front-line staff. It was found that, in the US sample, middle managers were involved in the initiation of 43 percent of the innovations, while front-line staff were involved in 27 percent, the same frequency as politicians (27 percent) and agency heads (28 percent). The Commonwealth sample showed that in the economically advanced countries middle managers were involved in 75 percent of the innovations and front-line staff in 39 percent. In the developing countries, middle managers were involved in initiating 44 percent of the innovations, a figure comparable to the 43 percent in the USA, but front-line workers initiated only 7 percent of the innovations. The latter figure is attributable to the disinclination of developing countries to empower their frontline staff. This may result from pay that is too low to be a motivator, an unwillingness or inability to provide training, a lack of resources necessary to test innovations, and/

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or rigid hierarchy. All told, these data confirm, in a wide variety of national contexts, that a substantial proportion of public-sector innovation comes from middle management and the front lines. Similarly, Walters (2001, p. 9), based on a more qualitative look at the applications to the Innovations in American Government awards, concludes that ‘‘innovative ideas spring up from all over the place – both inside and outside of organizations, and from the middle, bottom, and top layers of an organization. Innovation, it turns out, has little regard for title.’’ Light (1998, p. 45) studied a sample of 18 particularly innovative non-profit and eight small governmental organizations in Minnesota and found that ‘‘almost all of them harvested ideas up and down the organization regardless of who had the idea.’’ While the largest number of innovations are initiated by middle managers and frontline staff, substantial percentages of innovations are initiated by politicians – 10 to 20 percent – and by agency heads – over 25 percent (Borins, 1998, 2001). Because organizations are pyramidal in shape, there are many more front-line staff and middle managers than agency heads and politicians, so that the propensity to innovate (that is, innovations per capita) on the part of politicians and agency heads is greater than on the part of middle managers and front-line staff. Borins (1998, pp. 48-9) explored for systematic differences in the circumstances of innovations initiated by politicians, agency heads, and middle managers and front-line staff (the latter two groups being pooled). Statistically, politicians tended to be

Table I Initiators of innovation (percent) Initiator Politician Agency head Middle manager Front line staff Middle manager or front-line staff Interest group Citizen Program client Other Total (percent) n

USA, 1999-1998 21 25 43a 27a 51 13 7 3 6 126 321

Commonwealth, Commonwealth, advanced developing 11 39 75 39 82 2 0 5 9 148 56

15 37 44 7 48 11 11 0 11 133 27

Notes: n = number of innovations. a indicates that the breakdown between innovations initiated by middle managers and innovations initiated by front-line staff for the US data was based on the 104 cases from 1995 to 1998. In the 217 cases from 1990 to 1994, these groups were coded together. Source: Borins (2001, p. 28)

the initiators when the innovation was a response to a crisis. Crisis was defined broadly as publicly visible failure, whether current or anticipated. This has an intuitive appeal because when there is a crisis in the public sector, citizens expect politicians to lead the response. Agency heads tended to be the initiators when they took over as the new leader. When a public sector agency is performing poorly and its poor performance becomes publicly visible, citizens expect politicians to appoint a new agency head to lead a turnaround. Finally, middle managers and front-line staff tended to initiate innovations that responded proactively to internal problems or took advantage of opportunities created by new technology. These can be thought of as three ideal types or polar cases. Subsequent research regarding the process of gathering support for an innovation also showed that the three groups employed different strategies for building support. Applicants were asked who were the strongest supporters of their innovation. Innovations initiated by public servants had a positive correlation with strongest support from immediate supervisors and a negative correlation with strongest support from the president or governor, the legislature, business lobbies, and the general public. Innovations initiated by agency heads had a positive correlation with strongest support from the political head of the agency and business lobbies. Innovations initiated by politicians had a positive correlation with strongest support from the president or governor, the legislature, business lobbies, the media, and the general public. Public servants worked through bureaucratic channels, rather than going over the heads of their colleagues to appeal directly for political support, while politicians went through political channels and mobilized public support (Borins, 2000a, pp. 503-4)[3]. We will consider each of the three ideal types of public sector innovation in more detail, providing several examples and exploring the role of leadership in it.

Bottom-up innovation What is the relationship between bottom-up innovation and leadership? To begin with, bottom-up innovations require and create leadership. The innovative process is not simply a matter of someone coming up with a good idea, putting it in a suggestion box, and the organization implementing it through its normal channels. Innovations require advocates and often become the subject of

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debate within an organization. They are sometimes introduced as pilot programs which must be evaluated before being applied in the entire organization. Innovations also lead to new structures within a given organization. For example, innovations frequently involve interorganizational collaboration (Bardach, 1998; Borins, 1998, pp. 19-23, 2001, pp. 11-13) and this collaboration is governed by creating coordinating structures, such as interdepartmental committees (Borins, 1998, pp. 96-101). The initiators of the innovation are likely to play a role in several of these aspects of the innovative process, such as advocacy or leading a pilot project. Because they are on the front lines or in middle management, they are creating an informal or alternative leadership structure. In one case the award applicant noted that ‘‘‘rebels,’ idea people, and employees involved in a leadership capacity outside came to the fore’’ (Borins, 2000b, p. 55). Innovation awards provide publicity for the winners, and initiators may develop visibility beyond their own organization, as they become involved in educating potential replicators. Individuals at lower ranks who distinguish themselves by initiating innovations are likely to be put on the fast track to senior positions. A recent example supports these observations. A group of young officers in the Ontario public service had the idea of holding a national conference looking at human resource issues from their own perspective. They formed a planning committee, approached the federal and several provincial governments for funding, and invited practitioners and academics as speakers. This advocacy process put them in touch with a variety of people they would not normally have encountered in their daily work, such as senior public servants (including several cabinet secretaries and permanent secretaries) and senior academics. The conference, entitled ‘‘New professionals driving a new public service,’’ turned out to be a great success, attracting 350 participants from all over Canada. After the downsizing of the last decade, public services are facing a need for renewal, particularly at the entry level, and this conference spoke to that concern. The conference organizers are maintaining their Web site (www.newpublicservice.ca), accepting speaking invitations, and planning to create a permanent organization. A second aspect of the relationship between leadership and bottom-up innovation is the stance that the public sector’s top leadership – ministers,

permanent secretaries, and senior public servants – take toward these initiatives. It could range from negative, to neutral, to highly supportive. A negative stance could come from a permanent secretary and senior public servants whose approach to management is strictly hierarchical, or from a minister who, possibly for ideological reasons, has an antipathy to her department. An American instance of the latter is Republican administrations that are unsympathetic to the mandates of the Department of Labor and the Environmental Protection Agency and that choose political appointees who want these departments to do as little as possible, certainly not to develop new programs. We can expect some permanent staff to leave and those who remain to keep their heads down. The Republican appointees might be receptive to initiatives that improve efficiency, thereby reducing the cost of existing operations. The appointees would want to see savings employed in other public sector priorities or used to reduce taxes. Because there is no possibility that any of the savings would be returned to the department, permanent staff would be unlikely to come forward with ideas to improve efficiency. A supportive stance requires politicians and senior managers creating a climate favourable for innovation. Robert Reich, Secretary of Labor in the Clinton Administration from 1993 to 1997, excelled at this. First, he made clear the department’s priorities, which included initiatives to improve wages and working conditions for America’s lowest paid and most vulnerable workers. Second, he made a habit of consulting career civil servants, for example in quarterly departmental town hall meetings. Third, he took every possible opportunity to recognize staff initiatives (Glynn, 1999). Some forms of recognition included establishing a departmental innovation award, bringing his career public servants to meetings with politicians and political appointees, and inviting careerists whose ideas had been incorporated into legislation to White House signing ceremonies to meet President Clinton (Reich, 1997, pp. 129-34). The department’s roof is an ideal vantage point to watch the fourth of July fireworks. Previous secretaries always invited political appointees and friends; Reich used these coveted invitations to reward innovative careerists (Glynn, 1999). Reich’s support helped put in place a number of innovations initiated by front-line staff or middle managers that were subsequently recognized as finalists and winners of the Innovations in American

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Government Award. These included an initiative to eradicate sweatshops by putting pressure on retailers to ensure that the products they were selling were not made in sweatshops (Donahue, 1999, pp. 47-58), the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation’s early warning program for large corporate pension plans at risk of default (Donahue, 1999, pp. 187-204), and a program in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to identify pro-actively workplace health hazards among large employers (Donahue, 1999, pp. 114-27). William Bratton, New York City’s Chief of Police during the mid-1990s, led his department in the implementation of programs that led to a marked decline in the city’s crime rate. He espouses a similar philosophy: I know perfectly well that most police departments don’t encourage or value innovation, cultivating instead conformity, complacency, and even timidity among police managers. But I also have met countless police officers and managers in my career who are bold, inventive, decisive, and eager for the big challenges of restoring order and safety to urban communities. My job as a police executive was to bring these people to the fore and let them run. . . . Every organization has a core group of people with original ideas and untapped talents. Some are in leadership positions, and some are not. A successful leader reaches deeply into the organization to find these people . . .. To propel a large organization forward, the leader has to enlist literally hundreds of coleaders at every level. . . . When people show initiative, perseverance, and competence in the field, reward them. I found my best managers in the middle and bottom of the vast management cadre at the NYPD. Their promotions sent a signal of opportunity to their fellow managers (Bratton and Andrews, 2001, pp. 252-7).

The Clinton administration’s reinvention labs are another case of political support for innovation. These were pilot projects, many proposed by front-line staff and middle managers; Vice President Gore, who was in charge of the reinvention effort, tried to ensure that these projects would be granted waivers from regulations to facilitate experimentation, and let it be known that his office would advocate on behalf of the labs within their own departments or in their relationships with central agencies (Osborne and Plastrik, 2000, pp. 444-50, 564, 569). To turn to a Canadian example: the Export Development Corporation (EDC) is a federal state-owned enterprise which finances purchasers of Canadian exports. In the late 1980s it established a capital markets group with the responsibility for finding new ways to raise money, rather than attempting to

borrow under the aegis of the federal government which itself had to finance huge deficits. The EDC capital markets group developed several sophisticated derivativebased financial instruments that were marketed to both large and small lenders. Staff in the federal Department of Finance were concerned and wanted to oversee the capital markets group closely. The deputy minister of finance at the time took the view that the group should be given autonomy; he also felt that if his department tried to rein them in, they would leave for lucrative private sector jobs (Gorbet, 2001). His support gave the group the freedom it needed. Not only can bottom-up innovations advance the goals set by politicians and senior public servants, but they can be the genesis of initiatives that politicians are willing to embrace as their own. Canada’s SchoolNet program (www.schoolnet.ca) demonstrates this. In the early 1990s, one particularly innovative middle manager in Industry Canada was thinking about how the federal government could gain a presence on the rapidly evolving Internet. An undergraduate student on a work term in the government proposed an interactive Web site to which primary and secondary school educators would send educational materials, and SchoolNet was launched (Dubeau, 2002; Hull, 2002). The program led to a federalprovincial initiative to connect all 16,500 Canadian elementary and secondary schools to the Internet by 2000. Federal and provincial politicians have become enthusiastic and highly visible supporters of these programs and have launched other initiatives to increase Internet access throughout Canada. To summarize: this section illustrates a number of types of high-level support for innovation. These include establishing clear organizational goals that encourage staff to achieve in innovative ways, consultation with staff, establishing innovation awards and providing informal recognition for innovators, relaxing constraints upon innovators, protecting innovators by ensuring that their projects have a fair chance to demonstrate whether they work, and providing resources for innovators. The last, providing resources, is implicit in many of the above examples. The main resources include giving the initiators time to work on their projects, which might involve a reduction in their other responsibilities, and giving them the budget to pay for the running costs of their projects. While some organizations have formally established funds to support innovations (Borins, 2001, p. 32), the more likely case is that innovations

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are funded out of organizational slack that senior managers can identify. Finally, innovation is a two-way street, in that successful innovations provide opportunities for politicians to take public credit for wise policies and effective programs.

Politically-directed innovation in response to crisis The most clear-cut crises, and those that have received the most academic attention, involve the physical security of a nation. An immediate example is the terrorist attack on the USA on September 11, 2001. Leading the response has consumed most of the time and attention of President Bush, his cabinet, and their most senior advisers. The following crises, of varying magnitudes, have in common politically-led and innovative responses: . City of Seattle Recycling Program. The City’s two landfills reached capacity in 1983 and 1986, and ceased operation. The federal government then designated these landfills as Superfund sites, thus raising closure costs to about $100 million. The city’s reliance on more distant landfills, together with closure costs, had already doubled disposal assessment rates. The mayor and city council responded to the crisis by directing the city’s solid waste utility to undertake an in-depth study of a wide range of options, including recycling, landfill, and incineration. The politicians also put in place a thorough process of public consultation. The ultimate outcome was a greatly expanded recycling program, reinforced by pricing incentives and public attitudes, that became a global leader (Borins, 1998; pp. 196, 201, 204). . Environment Canada Ultraviolet Index Program. The program was initiated in response to NASA’s February 1992 prediction of a severe thinning of the ozone layer over North America that spring. Environment Minister Jean Charest gave his department four months to implement a program to inform the public of ultra-violet risk. They developed a daily index of the intensity of ultraviolet exposure that has been adopted internationally (Borins, 2000a, pp. 55, 68). . Cuban Missile Crisis. In response to the secretive placement of Russian missiles in Cuba, the Kennedy administration implemented a naval blockade of Cuba that put sufficient pressure on the Russians to remove the missiles, without resorting to war (Allison, 1971).

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Six-Day War. In response to an Egyptian naval blockage of the Red Sea and invasion by Egypt, Syria, and Jordan, the Israeli cabinet initiated a war by directing its air force to launch a surprise attack that destroyed the entire Egyptian air force on the ground, clearing the way for a quick and massive victory over the Arab alliance (Brecher and Geist, 1980).

As a set, these four examples present a paradox. The first two are not well-known outside of their particular policy communities, but have been recognised by innovation awards in their respective countries. The last two are very well known historically, but have not been thought of in terms of innovation. Detailed historical study, however, makes clear that the American and Israeli responses were both effective and innovative. In the American case, the alternative to a naval blockade was an air strike and/or an invasion, both of which were strongly favoured by the military, but would likely have led to nuclear war between the USA and USSR. The blockade signaled the seriousness of American intentions, but gave the Russians time to make an orderly retreat. In the Israeli case, the air force attack relied on intelligence information that the Egyptian planes sat wingtip-to-wingtip at their bases. Since then, no combat-ready air force would ever again expose itself in a similar way. The two famous crises have been of particular interest to students of decision making and crisis management. In his study of Israeli decisions in the Six-Day and Yom Kippur Wars, Brecher concluded that as tensions mounted, the Israeli Cabinet’s search for information and receptivity to it increased, the Cabinet broadened its consultative circle, and increased its search for, and care in the evaluation of, alternatives (Brecher and Geist, 1980, pp. 403-4). The decision-making process followed by the Excom (the ad hoc group chosen to advise President Kennedy) has been characterized as one based on inquiry, rather than advocacy (Garvin and Roberto, 2001). A wide range of options was proposed and studied carefully. Assumptions were tested, and participants acted as skeptical generalists. Experts outside the group were also consulted. The American process was characterized by the same hunger for information, creative generation and testing of alternatives, and widespread consultation (at least subject to the constraints of secrecy) as the Israeli. These processes have been set forth as best practice for collective decision

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making under the high stakes and time pressures that typify crises. These cases also demonstrate two patterns of political-bureaucratic interaction. In each case, politicians defined the problem and took responsibility for choosing the solution. They instructed the bureaucracy to provide information to inform their choices among alternatives and then to implement their decisions. In three of the four cases, the politicians were confident in the analytic and implementation capability of the bureaucracy. Seattle’s politicians were sure the waste utility managers could analyze the disposal alternatives in terms of economic and environmental impacts; Environment Minister Charest relied upon his scientists to develop quickly a valid way of measuring ultraviolet exposure; the Israeli Cabinet trusted the air force to work out procedures for a sudden attack (time of day, altitude, route, etc.). The exception was the Cuban Missile Crisis. As Allison (1971) made clear, and the recent movie Thirteen Days illustrates, there was considerable antipathy between the Kennedy administration and the armed forces, manifested at both the analysis and implementation stages. The politicians felt the generals were trigger-happy, and the generals thought the politicians (especially after refusing air support for the abortive Bay of Pigs invasion a year previously) were cowards. One political-bureaucratic confrontation described in Allison (1971, pp. 127-32) and depicted in Thirteen Days involved Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara giving explicit directions to captains of ships involved in the blockade, rather than going through the normal chain of command. The discussion of bottom-up innovation noted the difference between situations where politicians trust the bureaucracy and those where they are suspicious of its objectives. In a crisis context, suspicion gives rise to politicians seeking alternative sources of information at the analysis stage, and monitoring closely at the implementation stage. In the instance where politicians were suspicious of the bureaucracy, the politicians took full credit for the innovation. In the other cases, while the crisis response was politically initiated, credit for the innovation was shared with public servants.

Organizational turnarounds led by agency heads The genesis of organizational turnarounds is quite different from that of crises. Crises are

a result of factors that are unprecedented, unpredictable, external, or environmental. In contrast, a turnaround is a response to a public sector organization that is simply not meeting normal expectations for service delivery. For example, some of the turnaround cases mentioned below involve failures to pick up garbage, provide swift emergency assistance to victims of natural disasters, regulate parking, pay workers’ compensation claims in a timely manner, and maintain safety in public housing. Each involves an implicit comparison with normal practice in other jurisdictions, and each was found to be failing to meet minimum standards. The similarity between crises and organizational performance failures is that both are publicly visible, leading to public demands on politicians for quick and effective action. The first step in a turnaround is invariably the appointment by politicians of a new agency head (Borins, 1998, p. 157). The agency head who presided over the failing organization is fired or reassigned, and often other members of the senior management team who identified closely with the discredited agency head, or who are unable to adapt to the new head, are also let go. Turnaround leaders are generally energetic, dynamic, and relatively young for the post. They come from outside the organization, but are not neophytes. They know the type of operation well and/or are well acquainted with one or more of the major stakeholders. Knowing the operation is important because immediate action is necessary, and the turnaround leader cannot spend the first six months learning on the job. Knowing the stakeholders is also important because gaining their support is often a critical early step in the reform process. Turnaround leaders are not classic charismatic leaders, who can inspire their followers in any setting. Much of their success comes from their expertise about the operation and their knowledge of key stakeholders. Agency turnarounds are not seen very frequently among the applications to innovation awards. Less than 5 percent of the applications to the innovation awards studied were classified as turnarounds. In a typical government, there are very few agencies that are total disasters. Most are performing relatively closely to the mean across jurisdictions, while a few may be best in their class. Most innovations are, therefore, attempts to move adequate performers to best in class, or initiatives by the best performers to push the frontiers forward (Borins, 1998, p. 154).

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Agency heads attempting turnarounds face two leadership challenges, one involving the politicians to whom they are responsible, and the other involving their staff. The challenge at the political level is to regain confidence. Tactics for doing this include emphasizing political accountability to raise performance expectations of the organization, undertaking new initiatives that will demonstrate the organization’s new vision and priorities, and using initial successes to convince politicians to provide additional resources for the organization (Borins, 1998, p. 156). A recent case that illustrates the importance of political support is the turnaround of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) led by James Lee Witt during the Clinton administration (Daniels and Clark-Daniels, 2000). After FEMA experienced some dramatic failures during the (George) Bush administration, Clinton appointed Witt, who had served him previously as director of the Arkansas Office of Emergency Services. Clinton supported Witt in several ways, including designating FEMA as the lead federal disaster agency and elevating Witt’s position to Cabinet status (Daniels and Clark-Daniels, 2000, p. 8). The leadership challenge involving staff is to convince dispirited people that change is possible and that their efforts to do better will be supported. One essential tactic is scapegoating, namely, arguing that the agency’s problems are not the fault of the staff who remain, but rather the fault of the discredited leadership. With the failed and discredited leaders removed, anything is possible. Many turnarounds involve reengineering the basic processes of the organization, for example replacing a centralized functional structure with geographically decentralized structures that give front-line workers more autonomy but also demand accountability for results. This can be facilitated through the increased use of information technology. In addition, the agencies will reach out to their clients and stakeholders, getting them more involved in both policy-setting and operations (Borins, 1998, pp. 156-8). It might be asked whether turnarounds are necessarily innovative. Is it especially innovative if an organization moves from being worst in class to average in class or even better than average, if what it is doing is simply replicating those that are best in class? Turnarounds may become innovative because the process of scapegoating the discredited leadership, reorganizing, and providing more autonomy for front-line staff makes it clear that the organization is truly open to new ideas and new ways of doing

things. It is legitimate to question all the old ways and propose better alternatives. An organization in the process of a turnaround may therefore take advantage of the receptiveness to new ideas that its new leaders display to go from being worst in class to best, thus producing many innovations. Even though turnarounds are relatively infrequent, there is no shortage of turnaround cases in the literature, in part because the actions of the turnaround leaders are often heroic – at least among bureaucrats – and in part because turnaround stories share the same mythic structure as biblical or literary tales of redemption or deliverance (Frye, 1982). Some recent examples include Witt’s turnaround at FEMA and two turnaround cases presented in fine-grained detail in Mark Moore’s (1995) well-known book Creating Public Value: Strategic Management in Government, one involving the Boston Housing Authority and the other the Houston Police Department. The discussion of turnarounds in Borins (1998, pp. 153-64) was based on four cases: New York City’s child health care clinics and vehicle (sanitation and snow removal fleets) maintenance facility, the City of Chicago’s parking enforcement program, and Washington State’s workers’ compensation system.

Conclusion This article has made the case that there exists a strong link between innovation and leadership in the public sector. The two ideal types of top-down innovation, responses to crises and agency turnarounds, are led by politicians and agency heads respectively. Politicians determine the strategic shape of responses to crises and agency heads the new vision and priorities for the organizations they are attempting to turn around. The best advice one could give to politicians responding to crises is to search widely for information, consult widely, and investigate a comprehensive set of options. Assumptions must be tested, and politicians and their advisers should act as skeptical generalists in evaluating information and options. Based on a substantial number of case studies, proven advice for agency heads leading turnarounds is to work simultaneously at regaining confidence at the political level and convincing dispirited staff that change is possible and their efforts to do better will be supported. Tactics to regain political confidence include emphasizing political accountability to raise performance

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expectations, undertaking new initiatives that will demonstrate a new vision and priorities, reaching out to clients and stakeholders, and using initial successes to leverage additional resources. At the staff level, tactics involve scapegoating previous discredited leaders and reengineering basic work processes, often through information technology. The quantitative evidence shows that bottom-up innovations occur more frequently in the public sector than received wisdom would have us believe. The individuals who initiate and drive these innovations are acting as informal leaders. The visibility these individuals gain and the results they achieve lead them to be promoted rapidly to positions of formal leadership. Politicians and senior public servants create organizational climates that will either support or stifle innovations from below. Creating a supportive climate would entail consulting staff, instituting formal awards and informal recognition for innovators, promoting innovators, protecting innovators from control-oriented central agencies, and publicly championing bottomup innovations that have proven successful and have popular appeal. A key thread running through this analysis is that the nature of the relationship between the political leadership, on the one hand, and the bureaucracy, on the other, has an impact on the nature and extent of innovation. If the political leadership distrusts the bureaucracy, it will attempt to stifle bottom-up innovation, micro-manage the response to crises, and use widespread replacement of staff as a turnaround tool. If the political leadership has a better relationship with the bureaucracy, it will both encourage bottom-up innovation and make the bureaucracy a partner in both crisis response and agency turnarounds. Politicians have a sense of the magnitude of the tasks they face and the capability of the public service that supports them, and it is this sense that would drive their stance toward the bureaucracy. The public good requires a bureaucracy that is loyal and professional, and that can be a willing and capable partner in innovation.

Notes 1 The standard definition of innovation in the academic literature is the adoption of an existing idea for the first time by a given organization, as distinct from invention, the creation of a new idea (Rogers, 1995). In practice, innovation has come to refer to both. The reason appears to be that, in a period of rapid change, the line has blurred, and

innovative organizations are both inventing and adopting. Sometimes adopted technology (VHS) turns out to be more popular than invented technology (Beta). Public sector innovation awards, the source of data for this article, also blur the distinction and recognize both inventions and effective adoptions. 2 Applications to three innovation awards have served as the basis of this research: 321 applications to the Innovations in American Government award between 1990 and 1998, 37 applications to the Institute of Public Administration of Canada (IPAC) public management innovation award between 1990 and 1994, and 83 applications to the Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management (CAPAM) international innovations award in 1998 and 2000. The American award was restricted to state and local government from 1990 to 1994 and broadened to include the federal government in 1995. The American award required semifinalists to complete a detailed questionnaire that dealt at length with the process of innovation and responses were coded and analyzed. A questionnaire modeled very closely on the American award questionnaire was sent to the applicants to the IPAC and CAPAM awards and responses were also coded and analysed. For a discussion of methodological issues see Borins (1998, pp. 12-18). 3 The next section discusses the importance of an organization’s top leaders creating a climate favourable to innovation. This can be done without their being directly involved in deciding the fate of many, or even any, particular innovations. Thus, front-line innovators would work through bureaucratic channels, rather than appealing directly to the political level or outside the organization.

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Received: January 2002 Revised: March 2002 Accepted: April 2002 The author would like to acknowledge the research assistance of Li Zhou and the comments of Eleanor Glor, Beth Herst, Marie McHugh, and two anonymous referees.

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and Canada’’, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Vol. 19 No 1, pp. 46-74. Borins, S. (2001), The Challenge of Innovating in Government, PricewaterhouseCoopers Endowment for the Business of Government, Arlington, VA. Bratton, W. and Andrews, W. (2001), ‘‘Leading for innovation and results in police departments,’’ in Hesselbein, F., Goldsmith, M. and Somerville, I. (Eds), Leading for Innovation, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, pp. 251-62. Brecher, M. and Geist, B. (1980), Decisions in Crisis: Israel, 1967 and 1973, University of California Press, Berkeley, CA. Daniels, R. and Clark-Daniels, C. (2000), Transforming Government: The Renewal and Revitalization of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, PricewaterhouseCoopers Endowment for the Business of Government, Arlington, VA. Donahue, J. (Ed.) (1999), Making Washington Work: Tales of Innovation in America’s Federal Government, Brookings, Washington, DC. Dubeau, K. (2002), e-mail to the author, 19 March. Fountain, J. (2001), Building the Virtual State: Information Technology and Institutional Change, Brookings, Washington, DC. Frye, N. (1982), The Great Code: The Bible and Literature, Academic Press, Toronto. Garvin, D. and Roberto, M. (2001), ‘‘What you don’t know about making decisions’’, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 79 No. 8, pp. 108-16. Gawthrop, L. (1999), ‘‘Public entrepreneurship in the lands of Oz and Uz’’, Public Integrity, Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 75-86. Glynn, T. (1999), US Deputy Secretary of Labor, 1992-96, Interview, 8 November. Goldsmith, S. (2001), ‘‘Innovation in government’’, in Hesselbein, F., Goldsmith, M. and Somerville, I. (Eds), Leading for Innovation, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, pp. 105-18. Goodsell, C. (1993), ‘‘Reinvent government or rediscover it?’’, Public Administration Review, Vol. 53 No. 1, pp. 85-7. Gorbet, F. (2001), Deputy Minister of Finance, Government of Canada, 1988-92, Interview, 10 October. Hamel, G. (2000), Leading the Revolution, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, MA. Hesselbein, F., Goldsmith, M. and Somerville, I. (2001), Leading for Innovation, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA.

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Note from the publisher A preview of forthcoming content The following papers are scheduled for publication in early issues of Vol. 24 (2003) of the Leadership & Organization Development Journal.

Transformational leadership: an examination of cross-national differences and similarities Exceptional success depends on sustaining extraordinary performance. Are there universal behaviours which are consistent around the world? Are there subtle differences of emphasis which vary across different nationalities or corporate environments? In a global petroleum company, 145 senior executives were asked to describe examples of exceptional organizational performance and to identify key leadership behaviours which they saw as accounting for the extraordinary outcomes. Content analysis of their coded responses led to a few leadership behaviours identified as key to the instances of exceptional performance. The major finding of this research study was that the main dimensions of leadership for extraordinary performance are universal. Only a few variations in emphasis existed among six different regions of the world. As expected, there were also some clear leadership differences, long established in the folklore of the company, associated with different corporate cultures in the two major divisions.

A comprehensive system for leader evaluation and development

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The aim was to describe the development of a theoretical model for leader evaluation and development, an instrument based on this model, and a strategy for large scale implementation in the Swedish armed forces. The model rests on an interactional person by situation paradigm. It emphasises ‘‘developmental leadership’’, which is inspired by transformational and functionalistic leadership approaches. The developmental leadership questionnaire (DLQ) was operationalised from the model and refined through structural equation modelling. The model and the DLQ will be used for yearly evaluation of all personnel in the Swedish armed forces, yearly planning dialogues between each employee and supervisor, and as a tool for leadership training. The implementation strategy includes an initial course in developmental leadership for all colonels. This is followed by the selection and training of local trainers, who, in turn, initiate the comprehensive

programme locally. The system should be fully implemented by 2005.

The positive impact and development of hopeful leaders Although hope is commonly used in terms of wishful thinking, as a positive psychological concept consisting of the dimensions of both willpower (agency) and waypower (pathways), it has been found to be positively related to academic, athletic and health outcomes. The impact of hopeful leaders, however, has not been empirically analyzed. This exploratory study (n = 59) found that high- as compared to low-hope leaders had more profitable work units and had better satisfaction and retention rates among their subordinates. The implications of these preliminary findings of the positive impact that hopeful leaders may have in the workplace are discussed.

Developing a leadership knowledge architecture: a cognitive approach Of all occupational groups, army officers are perhaps the most appropriate for studying leadership. A great deal of an officer’s effort and time is spent serving in a leadership capacity. This research with New Zealand Army officers (n = 103) describes the development of an instrument that directs and facilitates the articulation of perceptions of leadership knowledge processes. The subsequent knowledge process architecture provides a credible platform for the design of leadership training and development programmes with high utility for the organisation because of increased learning transfer from the leadership programme back to the workface.

Gender and leadership? Leadership and gender? A journey through the landscape of theories The paper seeks to examine whether women’s leadership styles are different from men’s, whether these styles are less effective, and whether the determination of women’s effectiveness as leaders is fact-based or a perception that has become a reality. The authors consider the four main schools of thought in this area of debate. Conclusions reveal that women’s leadership style is different from men’s but men can learn from and adopt ‘‘women’s’’ style; furthermore, women’s styles of leadership are not likely to be less effective than men’s. Finally, the authors conclude that the assessment that a woman’s leadership style is less effective than a man’s is not fact-based but rather driven, by socialization, to a perception that certainly persists.

[ 477 ]

Author and title index to volume 23, 2002

A Aligning factors for successful organizational renewal, LESTER, D.L. and PARNELL, J.A., 2, p. 60

B BENNETT, H., Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government?, 8, p. 431 BORINS, S., Leadership and innovation in the public sector, 8, p. 467 BRYMAN, A., see DAINTY, A.R.J.

SIVANATHAN, N. and FEKKEN, G.C., 4, p. 198 Employee commitment: the key to absence management in local government?, BENNETT, H., 8, p. 430 Empowerment within the UK construction sector, DAINTY, A.R.J., BRYMAN, A. and PRICE, A.D.F., 6, p. 333 ENGLEHARDT, C.S. and SIMMONS, P.R., Organizational flexibility for a changing world, 3, p. 113 Entrepreneurial leadership in high-tech firms: a field study, SWIERCZ, P.M. and LYDON, S.R., 7, p. 380 Examining the relationship between leadership and emotional intelligence in senior level managers, GARDNER, L. and STOUGH, C., 2, p. 68

C CHAPMAN, J.A., A framework for transformational change in organisations, 1, p. 16 CHU, P. and IP, O., Downsizing in the Internet industry: the Hong Kong experience, 3, p. 158 Cigars, whiskey, and winning: a qualitative analysis of Kaltman’s analysis of General Ulysses S. Grant’s leadership, LARSSON, G., 1, p. 45 Clarifying inspirational motivation and its relationship to extra effort, DENSTEN, I.L., 1, p. 40 COLEMAN, M., see POUNDER, J.S. COOPER, C.L., see HOAG, B.G.

D DAINTY, A.R.J., BRYMAN, A. and PRICE, A.D.F., Empowerment within the UK construction sector, 6, p. 333 DARLING, J.R., see McKENNA, M.K. DARLING, J.R., see SHELTON, C.D. DENSTEN, I.L., Clarifying inspirational motivation and its relationship to extra effort, 1, p. 40 Differences between Danish and Swedish management, HAVALESCHKA, F., 6, p. 323 Downsizing in the Internet industry: the Hong Kong experience, CHU, P. and IP, O., 3, p. 158

E Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 478–480 # MCB UP Limited [ISSN 0143-7739]

[ 478 ]

EAGLESON, G., see WALDERSEE, R. ELANGOVAN, A.R., Managerial intervention in disputes: the role of cognitive biases and heuristics, 7, p. 390 Emotional intelligence, moral reasoning and transformational leadership,

F FEKKEN, G.C., see SIVANATHAN, N. Five years on – the organizational culture saga revisited, LEWIS, D., 5, p. 280 (A) framework for transformational change in organisations, CHAPMAN, J.A., 1, p. 16 From local identity to global integrity, LESSEM, R. and PALSULE, S., 4, p. 174

G GABEL, S., Leading from the middle: surviving the squeeze of apparently irreconcilable forces, 7, p. 361 GARDNER, L. and STOUGH, C., Examining the relationship between leadership and emotional intelligence in senior level managers, 2, p. 68

H HARTLEY, J., Leading communities: capabilities and cultures, 8, p. 419 HAVALESCHKA, F., Differences between Danish and Swedish management, 6, p. 323 High performance and human resource characteristics of successful small manufacturing and processing companies, ROWDEN, R.W., 2, p. 79 HOAG, B.G., RITSCHARD, H.V. and COOPER, C.L., Obstacles to effective organizational change: the underlying reasons, 1, p. 6

I (The) impact of behavioral style assessment on organizational effectiveness: a call for

Author and title index to volume 23, 2002 Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 478–480

action, McKENNA, M.K., SHELTON, C.D. and DARLING, J.R., 6, p. 314 (The) impact of executive coaching and 360 feedback on leadership effectiveness, THACH, E.C., 4, p. 205 IP, O., see CHU, P.

J JOHNSON, J.R., Leading the learning organization: portrait of four leaders, 5, p. 241

K KODAMA, M., Transforming an old economy company into a new economy success: the case of NTT DoCoMo, 1, p. 26

L LARSSON, G., Cigars, whiskey, and winning: a qualitative analysis of Kaltman’s analysis of General Ulysses S. Grant’s leadership, 1, p. 45 Leadership: an ‘‘alternative’’ view, LLOYD, B., 4, p. 228 Leadership and innovation in the public sector, BORINS, S., 8, p. 467 Leadership and knowledge management, LLOYD, B., 5, p. 288 Leadership and organizational effectiveness in multinational enterprises in southeast Asia, RODSUTTI, M.C. and SWIERCZEK, F.W., 5, p. 250 Leading communities: capabilities and cultures, HARTLEY, J., 8, p. 419 Leading from the middle: surviving the squeeze of apparently irreconcilable forces, GABEL, S., 7, p. 361 Leading in the age of paradox: optimizing behavioral style, job fit and cultural cohesion, SHELTON, C.D., McKENNA, M.K. and DARLING, J.R., 7, p. 372 Leading the learning organization: portrait of four leaders, JOHNSON, J.R., 5, p. 241 Leading urban institutions of higher education in the new millennium, RANTZ, R., 8, p. 456 LE BLANC, P.M., see VAN DIERENDONCK, D. LESSEM, R. and PALSULE, S., From local identity to global integrity, 4, p. 174 LESTER, D.L. and PARNELL, J.A., Aligning factors for successful organizational renewal, 2, p. 60 LEWIS, D., Five years on – the organizational culture saga revisited, 5, p. 280 LIU, C.-H., YU, Z.-Y. and TJOSVOLD, D., Production and people values: their impact on relationships and leader effectiveness in China, 3, p. 134 LLOYD, B., Leadership: an ‘‘alternative’’ view, 4, p. 228

LLOYD, B., Leadership and knowledge management, 5, p. 288 LYDON, S.R., see SWIERCZ, P.M.

M McKENNA, M.K., see SHELTON, C.D. McKENNA, M.K., SHELTON, C.D. and DARLING, J.R., The impact of behavioral style assessment on organizational effectiveness: a call for action, 6, p. 314 Managerial intervention in disputes: the role of cognitive biases and heuristics, ELANGOVAN, A.R., 7, p. 390 Managing change in product development organization: learning from Volvo Car Corporation, MIKAELSSON, J., 6, p. 301 Ma VALLE, S.A., The phenomenon of organizational evolution: a model for analysis, 4, p. 215 MIKAELSSON, J., Managing change in product development organization: learning from Volvo Car Corporation, 6, p. 301 (A) model for organization-based 360 degree leadership assessment, TESTA, M.R., 5, p. 260

N Non-linear change in organizations: organization change management informed by complexity theory, STYHRE, A., 6, p. 343

O O’BRIEN, G., Participation as the key to successful change – a public sector case study, 8, p. 442 Obstacles to effective organizational change: the underlying reasons, HOAG, B.G., RITSCHARD, H.V. and COOPER, C.L., 1, p. 6 Organizational flexibility for a changing world, ENGLEHARDT, C.S. and SIMMONS, P.R., 3, p. 113

P PALSULE, S., see LESSEM, R. PARNELL, J.A., see LESTER, D.L. Participation as the key to successful change – a public sector case study, O’BRIEN, G., 8, p. 442 (The) phenomenon of organizational evolution: a model for analysis, Ma VALLE, S.A., 4, p. 215 POLITIS, J.D., Transformational and transactional leadership enabling (disabling) knowledge acquisition of self-managed teams: the consequences for performance, 4, p. 186

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Author and title index to volume 23, 2002 Leadership & Organization Development Journal 23/8 [2002] 478–480

POUNDER, J.S. and COLEMAN, M., Women – better leaders than men? In general and educational management it still ‘‘all depends’’, 3, p. 122 PRICE, A.D.F., see DAINTY, A.R.J. Production and people values: their impact on relationships and leader effectiveness in China, LIU, C.-H., YU, Z.-Y. and TJOSVOLD, D., 3, p. 134

R RANTZ, R., Leading urban institutions of higher education in the new millennium, 8, p. 456 (A) review of servant leadership attributes: developing a practical model, RUSSELL, R.F. and STONE, A.G., 3, p. 145 RITSCHARD, H.V., see HOAG, B.G. RODSUTTI, M.C. and SWIERCZEK, F.W., Leadership and organizational effectiveness in multinational enterprises in southeast Asia, 5, p. 250 ROWDEN, R.W., High performance and human resource characteristics of successful small manufacturing and processing companies, 2, p. 79 RUSSELL, R.F. and STONE, A.G., A review of servant leadership attributes: developing a practical model, 3, p. 145

Supervisory behavior, reciprocity and subordinate absenteeism, VAN DIERENDONCK, D., LE BLANC, P.M. and VAN BREUKELEN, W., 2, p. 84 SWIERCZ, P.M. and LYDON, S.R., Entrepreneurial leadership in high-tech firms: a field study, 7, p. 380 SWIERCZEK, F.W., see RODSUTTI, M.C.

T TESTA, M.R., A model for organization-based 360 degree leadership assessment, 5, p. 260 THACH, E.C., The impact of executive coaching and 360 feedback on leadership effectiveness, 4, p. 205 TIRMIZI, S.A., The 6-L framework: a model for leadership research and development, 5, p. 269 TJOSVOLD, D., see LIU, C.-H. Transformational and transactional leadership enabling (disabling) knowledge acquisition of self-managed teams: the consequences for performance, POLITIS, J.D., 4, p. 186 Transforming an old economy company into a new economy success: the case of NTT DoCoMo, KODAMA, M., 1, p. 26

V S Shared leadership in the implementation of re-orientations, WALDERSEE, R. and EAGLESON, G., 7, p. 400 SHELTON, C.D., see McKENNA, M.K. SHELTON, C.D., McKENNA, M.K. and DARLING, J.R., Leading in the age of paradox: optimizing behavioral style, job fit and cultural cohesion, 7, p. 372 SIMMONS, P.R., see ENGLEHARDT, C.S. SIVANATHAN, N. and FEKKEN, G.C., Emotional intelligence, moral reasoning and transformational leadership, 4, p. 198 (The) 6-L framework: a model for leadership research and development, TIRMIZI, S.A., 5, p. 269 SMITH, M.E., What client employees say about consultants, 2, p. 93 STONE, A.G., see RUSSELL, R.F. STOUGH, C., see GARDNER, L. STYHRE, A., Non-linear change in organizations: organization change management informed by complexity theory, 6, p. 343

[ 480 ]

VAN BREUKELEN, W., see VAN DIERENDONCK, D. VAN DIERENDONCK, D., LE BLANC, P.M. and VAN BREUKELEN, W., Supervisory behavior, reciprocity and subordinate absenteeism, 2, p. 84

W WALDERSEE, R. and EAGLESON, G., Shared leadership in the implementation of re-orientations, 7, p. 400 What client employees say about consultants, SMITH, M.E., 2, p. 93 Women – better leaders than men? In general and educational management it still ‘‘all depends’’, POUNDER, J.S. and COLEMAN, M., 3, p. 122

Y YU, Z.-Y., see LIU, C.-H.